§ Mr. William Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many private, fee-paying schools exist for the education of mentally-disturbed children; how many pupils there are in such schools; how many such schools have been inspected and registered as having satisfactory standards of accommodation and teaching; and what steps she takes to ensure that such standards are maintained.
§ Mrs. ThatcherOn the latest information, there are 49 independent schools in England catering wholly or mainly for maladjusted pupils. They contain about 1,900 handicapped pupils placed by local education authorities which paid their fees. All these schools are subject to unannounced visits by Her Majesty's Inspectorate in the interests of maintaining standards.