§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on his Department's policy towards autistic children; and what guidelines his Department issues on the placing of autistic children in schools. [49950]
§ Ms Estelle MorrisSchools and local education authorities have statutory duties to identify, assess and provide for children's special educational needs, including the individual needs of children with autistic spectrum disorders. In doing so they must have regard to the guidance contained in the Department's "Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs". Decisions by LEAs on the placement of autistic children with statements of SEN will reflect the profile of the particular child's autism and may be in autism specific schools, other special schools, units in mainstream schools or in mainstream classes with support. The Department will publish shortly the report of a study by the University of Birmingham, assessing the current research evidence about the educational interventions for children with autism.