§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Cambridgeshire, North-East of 2 December, Official Report, column 13, whether the figures referred to are derived from form 7; whether this form distinguishes between children already in receipt of a statement and those for whom a statement could be considered appropriate by the school; and whether he will place a copy of the relevant form from which the figures are compiled in the Library.
§ Mr. DunnThe numbers of pupils with statements of special educational needs in mainstream and special schools given in the answer of 13 June at columns514–18, were derived from form 7 and form 7M, respectively, for January 1984.
Before 1984 pupils were not classified as having special education needs but were ascertained as handicapped under the provisions of the Education Act 1944. The returns for January 1984 fell during the period when transitional arrangements under the 1981 Act applied, because authorities were not legally required to have completed their issue of statements until 31 March 1984. Accordingly, form 7 in January 1984 required schools to include in their returns, pupils already in receipt of statements and those who were previously ascertained as handicapped but had not yet received statements. These two categories of pupils were not distinguished in the return: to do so would have increased the complexity of the form to an unacceptable degree.
The form 7M returns for special schools (other than hospital schools) for both 1984 and 1985 did not ask schools to distinguish pupils with statements from others. All pupils in these schools are assumed to have statements. Copies of the relevant forms and notes for guidance have been placed in the Library.