§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many visually impaired children attend mainstream schools in each local education authority areas of Wales; and how many such children have received formal mobility training during their education.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsInformation on mobility training for children with visual impairments is not collected centrally.
The numbers of children in maintained primary and secondary schools who were blind or partially sighted and for whom the local education authority was maintaining a statement of special educational needs, in January 1991, are given in the table:
Number Clwyd 78 Dyfed 23 Gwent 19 Gwynedd 14 Mid Glamorgan 13 Powys 3 South Glamorgan 24 West Glamorgan 63 Wales 237 These figures include children in both mainstream classes and special classes units, in maintained primary and secondary schools. The figure for Powys includes one pupil educated outside of that authority. There may be a number of children with visual impairments for whom the LEA does not maintain a statement of special educational needs.
§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many children between the ages of five and 16 years are estimated to have visual impairment; and if he will publish the official local education authority estimates for totals of blind and partially sighted children.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsLocal education authority estimates of children with visual impairments are not held centrally. Information on the total numbers of children with visual impairments for whom LEAs maintain statements of special educational needs, by local education authority, is published in table 10.04, "Pupils with disabilities, by authority, 1990–91", of the Welsh Office publication "Statistics of Education in Wales: Schools, No. 5 1991", a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.