§ Mr. AshleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will request from local authorities information regarding the amount and nature of specialist support being provided for children with special needs through the machinery of statementing; if he will take steps to ensure that the help given to deaf children comes from qualified teachers of the deaf; and if he will make a statement regarding the availability of such teachers.
§ Mr. ButcherLocal education authorities have responsibility for meeting the special educational provision contained in a child's statement of special educational needs. Information about this provision is not collected centrally. The Education (Teachers) Regulations 1982 set out the additional qualification which teachers must acquire in order to teach classes of hearing-impaired children. The training of teachers of the deaf is recognised as a national priority area within the local education authority training grant scheme and sufficient resources are made available annually to maintain a regular supply of trained teachers.
If any local authority or school is having difficulty in recruiting teachers for this work, it would be helpful if they would inform my Department.