§ Sir Anthony GrantTo ask the Secretary of State for Education how many appeals for special educational provision under the Education Act 1981 are pending; what is the average time for determining these appeals; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. ForthThe Department is currently dealing with some 500 appeals under sections 5(6) and 8(6) of the Education Act 1981 and related complaints under sections 68 and 99 of the Education Act 1944.
Those resolved over the last year have taken on average about 10 months to conclude. Appeals under section 8(6)
1122W
Numbers and percentages of pupils in single teacher classes by size in maintained primary and secondary schools in each local education authority in England. 1991–1994(provisional) Position in January each year 1. Primary schools(classes of size) LEA 1991 1992 numbers percentages numbers percentages 31–35 36+ 31–35 36+ 31–35 36+ 31–35 36+ Corporation of London 0 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0.0 0.0 Camden 220 0 2.8 0.0 541 0 6.5 0.0 Greenwich 1,178 38 7.0 0.2 1,305 0 7.8 0.0 Hackney 257 84 2.2 0.7 219 0 1.9 0.0 Hammersmith and Fulham 314 40 4.6 0.6 565 84 8.1 1.2 Islington 315 0 2.8 0.0 756 0 6.6 0.0 Kensington and Chelsea 187 0 4.0 0.0 130 0 2.7 0.0 Lambeth 284 84 1.9 0.6 630 0 4.0 0.0 Lewisham 661 37 4.0 0.2 1,943 74 11.0 0.4 Southwark 1,352 37 8.5 0.2 1,326 77 7.9 0.5 tend to take the longest to process, as the courts have made it clear that we must copy correspondence from one party to the other, and allow time for comment in the interests of natural justice, until no new issues arise. In such cases, much of the time taken is beyond the Department's control.
Appeals against decisions taken by LEAs after 1 September under the Education Act 1993 are now referred to the Special Education Needs Tribunal, which is subject to different legal procedures and has a target of five months for deciding appeals.