§ Mr. LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what funding he will make available to enable schools and colleges to improve facilities for people with disabilities. [104272]
§ Ms HodgeWe have significantly increased the funding available under the Schools Access Initiative to enable local education authorities to improve access to mainstream schools and the curriculum for pupils with disabilities. We recently announced that £30 million will be available in the 2000–01 financial year. This is a 50 per cent. increase on the previous year's level of funding and 200 per cent. increase on funds available in 1996–97. We expect to allocate £100 million for access schemes in the three years to 2002.
In the Further Education sector the Further Education Funding Council's (FEFC) funding methodology allows for additional units of funding, to be allocated to support provision for students with disabilities, or learning difficulties. This is used to fund a range of support for individual students, including care assistants and signers. In addition, £12 million capital funding has been allocated 272W over three years (1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02) specifically to improve access and facilities for students with learning difficulties and or disabilities. Capital projects supported under the general widening participation and skills agenda will also have the potential to improve access for disabled students. Responsibility for funding of further education will pass to the Learning and Skills Council from April 2001 and a consultation document on the new Council's funding arrangements will be issued early in 2000.
Improving access and facilities for disabled people in education was a key feature of the recommendations of the Disability Rights Task Force, who published their report "From Exclusion to Inclusion" in December 1999. We will be introducing legislation later this session to address its recommendations for education and consider longer term costs as part of the Year 2000 Spending Review.