§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if, pursuant to her replies on 15th March 1977, the subsequent correspondence with the hon. Member for Eccles, and the completion of her Department's survey, she will make a further statement of her policy towards making mandatory grants for handicapped students undertaking further education.
§ Mr. OakesWhile I appreciate the problems of handicapped students, I regret that no major extension of the scope of mandatory awards is possible within present resources. Discussions on the results of the recent survey of local education authority discretionary awards are being arranged between my Department and the local authority associations. The question of discretionary awards to handicapped students will be included in those discussions.