§ Mr. HayesTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what plans he has to allocate funds towards providing special support to improve literacy among deaf or hearing-impaired children; [29802]
(2) what additional resources he has allocated to ensure that the benefits of the Literacy Hour and the National Year of Reading are made available to deaf or hearing-impaired children. [29790]
479W
§ Ms Estelle MorrisLocal education authorities have been invited to involve all mainstream primary and special schools in their strategies for improving literacy. On 29 January, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced that £23 million would be made available to schools for the purchase of books. This will benefit children across the country including the deaf and hearing impaired. We have allocated a further £59 million from the Standards Fund in the 1998–99 financial year to support literacy in schools.