§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many children in special schools were without a statement of needs in(a) January 1986 and (b) January 1991. in each county in Wales.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsInformation relating to January 1986 is not available. Data for the next available year and 1991 are shown in the table:
141W
Non-statemented pupils 1987 11991 Clwyd 0 49 Dyfed 0 0 Gwent 16 0 Gwynedd 0 2 Mid Glamorgan 1 1 Powys 0 8 South Glamorgan 49 85 West Glamorgan 0 0 Wales 66 145 1 From 1989 onwards, information on statemented pupils in special schools was collected at September.
§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will make a statement on his policies for children in special schools;
(2) if he will make a statement on the working of the Education Act 1981 concerning children in special schools.
§ Sir Wyn RobertsOur policy for children in special schools, as with other children, is to provide them with the opportunities to make the most of their potential. The Government have undertaken a fundamental review of the relevant provisions of the Education Act 1981 and we are bringing forward proposals to improve the current assessment and statementing process, to give parents the right to express a preference for their child's school and to provide a new appeal system. The details are in the consultation document "Special Education Needs—Access to the System" which was published on 15 July and a copy of which is in the Library of the House. These proposals will benefit not only children in special schools but all children with special educational needs.