§ 21. Mr. Jon Owen JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to review the Education Act 1981's definition of learning difficulties.
§ Mr. ForthThe Education Bill currently under consideration in Standing Committee embodies the results of a review of legislative provision for children with special educational needs. The definition of a "learning difficulty" contained in section 1(2) of the Education Act 1981 has been carried forward into clause 139(2) of the present Bill. Clause 140 of that Bill provides for a code of practice. Subject to the passage of the Bill and secondary legislation, that code will contain criteria for the making of assessments and statements to which authorities will need to have regard in deciding whether children have learning difficulties.