§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) if he will make a statement on the availability of speech and language therapists for those with special educational needs in Essex; [144774]
(2) what recent estimate his Department has made of the waiting time for children with special educational needs to access speech and language therapy; and through which organisations this service is provided. [144775]
70W
§ Dr. LadymanI have been asked to reply.
Primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities, local authorities, and other local stakeholders have the responsibility of improving the health of the community, securing the provision of high quality services, and integrating health and social care locally. They have the resources to commission services, and to identify the number of professional staff that they need to deliver those services. This process provides the means for addressing local needs within the health community including the provision of speech and language therapy. Information on waiting times for these services is not collected centrally.