§ Mrs. Ann TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what action her Department is taking to improve facilities in schools for children with moderate learning difficulties.
§ Mr. ForthAnnual capital guidelines for 1995–96 include notional allocations of over £7 million for special education projects. No specific sums are earmarked for schools for children with moderate learning difficulties: it is for local education authorities to decide their own capital expenditure priorities and to make the best use of the resources available to them through ACGs. Further sums will become available through supplementary credit412W approvals for specific special education projects in the course of the financial year.
§ Mrs. Ann TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what action her Department is taking to bring up to the standards set out in "Building Bulletin 77" the schools for pupils with severe learning difficulty in Kirklees.
§ Mr. ForthThe guidance in "Building Bulletin 77" is not mandatory. It sets out good practice in the design of accommodation for new special school buildings and for the adaptation of existing special schools. My right hon. Friend takes account of how closely proposals for new construction in special schools—in Kirklees, and elsewhere—comply with the bulletin when considering the approval of premises under section 185 of the Education Act 1993.