§ Mr. WillisTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, pursuant to his answer on 3 December 2001,Official Report, column 77W, on autistic spectrum disorders, what the change in the number of children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorders has been since 1980; and if she will increase funding for children with SEN, with specific reference to autistic spectrum disorders. [32915]
§ Mr. Ivan LewisThe Department does not collect education data on the number of pupils with autistic spectrum disorders, though we are examining whether data on different types of special educational needs could be collected, probably from January 2004. The Medical Research Council's recently completed review of the epidemiology and causes of autism notes that in recent years there has been a widespread perception that the number of people with autism coming to clinical attention has greatly increased. It states that the apparent increase in prevalence of autism is likely to have resulted from better diagnosis and clearer definition as well as increased awareness. Direct comparisons are, however, complicated by the different definitions and methodologies used in research studies in the past.
Funding is not made available for specific categories of special educational need. Rather, funding is allocated and distributed via local education authorities (LEAs), who have a duty to provide appropriately for all children in their area. This includes the duty to identify children's individual special educational needs and to deliver the most appropriate provision to meet those needs.
Overall funding for education, including for pupils with special educational needs, is increasing. Details of provisional 2002–03 Education Standard Spending (ESS) allocations for each LEA were announced in December, with an overall increase of more than £1.3 billion compared to the current year. Alongside this we have also made £91 million of supported expenditure available for special educational needs in next year's Standards Fund (2002–03), an increase from the £82 million available this year. The fund can be used for a range of activities including training for staff in special educational needs. By 2003–04 average recurrent funding per pupil will have increased by over £760 in real terms since 1997–98.