HL Deb 27 January 1998 vol 585 cc24-5WA
Lord Rix

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their response to the statement of the governing body of the Central School of Speech and Drama, following the recent decision to transfer responsibility from the Department for Education and Employment to the Department of Health, that as they will no longer be able to pool funds to meet costs they intend to discontinue future courses of Clinical Communication Sciences BSc (Hons) for speech and language therapists; and [HI,243]

How they reconcile the closure of the speech therapy course at the Central School for Speech and Drama with their statement in the recently published Green Paper Excellence for All Children on special educational needs (October 1997) that speech and language therapy is now recognised as a key player in the education of children with special needs and the growing proportion of elderly people who have difficulty communicating due to conditions such as Parkinson's disease and strokes; and [HL244]

How they propose that the increased demand for speech and language therapy will be met if the trend towards closure of courses continues and what plans they have to ensure there is no further reduction in the limited number of courses available. [HL245]

Baroness Jay of Paddington

The Department of Health values the contribution that speech and language therapy services make to the health and education of children with special needs and to the rehabilitation and support of people with disabilities affecting their ability to communicate.

There is no evidence to suggest that the announcement of the closure of the speech and therapy course at the Central School for Speech and Drama is directly connected with the funding changes which will take place in response to the Dearing Report.

The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, which validates all speech and language therapy courses, and Department of Health officials are aware of the withdrawal of this course and discussions will be taking place to make sure that existing students' needs have been taken into account and that the supply of speech and language therapy graduates to the National Health Service is not affected.