Education and Skills Bill

I shall speak to Amendments Nos. 171, 174 and 175 in this group. Amendment No. 171 picks up the points made by the noble Baroness, Lady Morris, about special educational needs. We discussed these at some length. The evidence from authorities such as the Prince’s Trust and Barnardo’s which was given in another place before its detailed consideration of the Bill in Committee makes it clear that, given the right guidance, those with learning and behavioural difficulties can be brought back into the learning process, but it can take a great deal of time and patience. Amendment No. 171 picks up the need for support for these young people. The heading given to Part 2 is: "““Support for participation in education or training: young adults with learning difficulties and young people in England””." As the Committee knows, we are specifically considering some of the young people who have learning and behavioural difficulties. Provision for them should go through to the age of 25, as it does for those who ask for statements of their special educational needs. That should be done unless the young people themselves make it clear that they do not wish to pursue such a programme of support over that period. I should also say at this point that we have a good deal of sympathy for Amendments Nos. 169, 170 and 173, all of which make the duty on local authorities more specific and spell out the need to clarify precisely what sort of services are to be provided. Amendments Nos. 174 and 175 apply to Clause 55, which is concerned with the directions given to local education authorities on the support services they will provide. Amendment No. 174 suggests that rather than giving the Secretary of State discretion in whether to issue directions to local education authorities, he will have to do so, while Amendment No. 175 suggests that those who deliver these services should be properly qualified. It provides that, "““such services must comply with the duties placed on local authorities by sections 8 to 10 of the Employment and Training Act 1973””." To clarify that, Section 44(1) of the Education Act 1997 makes it clear that: "““All registered pupils at a school to which the section applies must be provided during the relevant phase of their education, with a programme of careers education””." That means education to prepare pupils to take decisions about their careers and help them to implement such decisions. The same section makes it clear that schools and colleges should co-operate with careers advisers when they are responsible for providing information, advice and guidance and defines the careers adviser as someone employed by the body providing these services in pursuance of these arrangements. That is the definition that I read out on a previous occasion. Amendment No. 175 makes it clear that the services to be provided under Clause 54 should conform to the pre-existing requirements placed on local authorities to provide proper information, advice and guidance within schools in order to meet their obligations to provide careers advice, and that this should be delivered by a qualified careers adviser as defined in the 1997 Act. These two pieces of pre-existing legislation should assure young people that they will have access to independent and impartial specialist careers advisers. We would like to see this provision in the Bill because there are serious concerns that these duties are not being fulfilled. We want a reassurance from Ministers that the directions to be issued by the Secretary of State will embody the principle and intention that this route to independent advice will be maintained and strengthened.