§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what resources are devoted in(a) Basildon and (b) England and Wales to the training of teachers in detecting and teaching dyslexic children; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ButcherThe allocation of resources, both for in-service training of teachers (apart from the LEA training grants scheme) and for the education of particular groups of children is a matter for determination by each local education authority.
§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what is his Department's latest estimate of dyslexic children and adults respectively; and how this compares with each of the last five years;
(2) what is his Department's latest estimate of dyslexic (a) children and (b) adults residing in the Basildon area; and how this compares for each of the last five years, respectively;
(3) what information his Department has on the number of children under 16 who suffer from dyslexia; and if he will make a statement;
(4) what proportion of under achievement of school children is due to dyslexia; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ButcherSince the implementation of the 1981 Education Act in 1983, this Department has not collected national or local statistics of children by category of handicap. This information is not therefore available.
§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what research his Department is carrying out into dyslexia; and if he will make a statement;
(2) how much was spent by his Department on carrying out research into dyslexia; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ButcherMy Department is not funding any research in this field at the present time. A total of five projects on specific learning difficulties were funded by this Department in recent years. Details of these projects, their completion dates, the researchers and the level of funding are (i) The prevalence and characteristics of children with specific learning difficulties, April 1983, Dr. D. A. Dobbins, £157,546 (ii) Development of a classroom-based integrated diagnostic/remediation procedure for failing readers, April 1983, Mr. G. E. F. Trickey, £98,385 (iii) The teaching of seven-year-old dyslexic pupils, June 1982, Professor P. R. Miles, £4,600 (iv) Action research project for dyslexic pupils 1981–82, June 1982, Mr. V. Tyre and Mr. P. Young, £40,750 (v) Follow-up study of 90 dyslexic pupils, June 1982, Professor T. R. Miles, £630.
In addition, my Department sponsored a seminar held on 22 May 1984, to disseminate the findings of the first four of the above research projects. Given this considerable funding effort, I think it is now appropriate that the Department's research funding into children with special educational needs should concentrate on other aspects of concern in the special education field.
§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations he has received from the British Dyslexia Association; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. ButcherMy right hon. Friend has received no representations from the British Dyslexia Association in recent months.