HC Deb 25 October 1973 vol 861 cc667-72W
Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the total sum spent by her Department on grants to non-maintained schools for handicapped children run by voluntary bodies in the financial years 1970–71, 1971–72 and 1972–73, respectively; and whether she will estimate what percentage these grants were of the total capital cost of the projects concerned in each financial year.

Mrs. Thatcher

The information is as follows:

£ Per cent
1970–71 608,773 66
1971–72 799,679 69
1972–73 679,057 68

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the total sum spent by local education authorities in the financial years 1970–71, 1971–72 and 1972–73, respectively, on the payment of fees for the education of handicapped children in independent schools.

Mrs. Thatcher

The information is not available. Numbers of handicapped pupils in independent schools in England paid for by local education authorities were 4,606 in January 1971, 5,464 in January 1972 and 5,840 in January 1973. Fees charged by independent schools were broadly of the order of £200 to £300 for a day place and £800 to £1,100 for a boarding place.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will specify some of the surveys and investigations being carried out by Her Majesty's inspectors and medical officers of the Department of Education and Science into the subject of handicapped children to which she referred in her written answer of 25th July 1973.

Mrs. Thatcher

The subjects covered include: slow learners in secondary schools; services for severely mentally handicapped children; physical education for the handicapped; physically handicapped children in ordinary schools; and arrangements for the screening of vision and hearing of schoolchildren. These surveys and investigations generally are on a small scale and do not lead to published reports. They form an integral part of the continuous appraisal and evaluation of services for handicapped children carried out by Her Majesty's inspectors and medical officers of my Department.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether she is satisfied with the progress of the policy whereby local education authorities regularly review and freshly assess from time to time children in their areas who are, at least for the time being, incapable of response to any form of educational stimulus.

Mrs. Thatcher

I believe that local education authorities do review and reassess from time to time the form of educational provision desirable for children in their areas who are very severely mentally handicapped, and I am glad to have this opportunity of drawing attention to the desirability of doing so. Provided children when young are exposed to suitable educational stimulus over a period of time, I believe that they will be found capable of benefiting from some form of education which is now their right.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the terms of reference of the substantial research programme in the field of special education to which she referred in a written answer on 25th July; and when she expects a report to be published.

Mrs. Thatcher

The programme comprises several distinct projects which I have sponsored at different times in the following fields:

  1. (a) The management of seriously maladjusted children.
  2. (b) The use of one-handed finger spelling in teaching deaf children.
  3. (c) Programmes for pre-school children with delayed language development.
  4. (d) Behaviour modification for remedial training of the non-ambulant profoundly retarded child.
  5. (e) Characteristics of severely educationally subnormal children in the North-West.
  6. (f) Learning processes of the mentally handicapped.
  7. (g) The late outcome of seizures in early childhood.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science in how many instances, since the passing of the Education (Handicapped Children) Act 1971, local authorities have applied to her for a direction determining what school a handicapped child should attend; and in how many instances parents have appealed directly to her, as laid down in Section 37(4) of the 1971 Act.

Mrs. Thatcher

Since 1st April 1971, there have been nine cases involving ESN (Severe) children of local education authorities applying to me under Section 37(3) of the Education Act 1944 for a direction determining the school to be named in a school attendance order. In all cases the parents were, as required, given the opportunity of naming the school of their choice. During the same period, no appeals were considered under Section 37(4) of the 1944 Education Act which involved ESN(S) children.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many junior training centres are still in existence as separate establishments from special schools for handicapped children.

Mrs. Thatcher

On 1st April 1971, 326 of the former junior training centres became new special schools for ESN children. The remaining six either were amalgamated with existing special schools or had education provided on the premises by local education authorities under Section 56 of the Education Act 1944.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many Form 1 HPs were completed by the examining doctor in the years 1971 and 1972; and how many children they deemed to be handicapped were placed in special schools.

Mrs. Thatcher

Form 1 HP is not issued by local education authorities for every child needing to go to a special school but only when the parents request or it is necessary for the purpose of securing a child's attendance at a special school under the compulsory attendance provisions of the Education Act 1944. Information about the number issued is not collected by my Department. Local education authority returns show that the number of children newly assessed as needing special educational treatment was 24,118 in 1971 and 24,254 in 1972; and that in 1971 20,728 and in 1972 22,540 children were newly placed in special schools or boarding homes.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what statistics are available of the most recent estimate of total annual expenditure by all local education authorities in the United Kingdom on the education of handicapped children.

Mrs. Thatcher

The estimated actual recurrent expenditure by all England and Wales on the education of handicapped children in special schools in the 1972–73 financial year is £82,522,810.

This does not include the cost of educating handicapped pupils in ordinary maintained primary and secondary schools, but, as a guide, in January 1973 a total of 11,027 handicapped children were receiving full-time education in special classes at ordinary schools, compared with 127,711 handicapped children in full-time attendance in special schools; nor does it include other special expenditure, for example, on the provision of education otherwise than at school.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many special school day places and how many special school boarding places were completed in the building programmes during 1971 and 1972.

Mrs. Thatcher

New special school places provided under major building programmes in England were taken into use as follows:

Calendar Year
1971 1972
Day 4,431 3,751
Residential 891 366

Further additional places may well have been provided by minor works, but no record of these is kept by my Department.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children are at present resident in hospitals for mentally handicapped children; how many of those children receive lessons in the hospital schools; and how many receive no education at all.

Mrs. Thatcher

In December 1971, returns made to the Department of Health and Social Security showed about 7,200 children aged 0–17 in these hospitals, of whom 3,850 were attending a hospital school, 150 were going out to school, 750 were receiving education on wards and 2,450 were not receiving any education. Her Majesty's Inspectors are confident that the last number was considerably larger in April 1971, when LEAs assumed responsibility for the education of these children, and is considerably smaller now.

Mr. Parkinson

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what are the latest figures of the pupil/teacher ratio in schools for the educationally subnormal.

Mrs. Thatcher

In January 1973, the ratio in special schools in England and Wales for ESN(M) children, that is, those who were described as ESN up to April 1971, was 11.3 to 1. For ESN(S) children, that is, the severely mentally handicapped children for whose education local education authorities assumed responsibility in April 1971, the ratio was 8.4 to 1. Hospital schools are excluded.