Education and Skills Bill

The provision of resources in this area has significantly increased in recent years. Planned local authority expenditure on special educational needs has increased from £2.8 billion in 2000-01 to £4.9 billion in 2007-08. Of course, the issue is to see that the money is spent wisely and that it is dedicated to special educational needs once it goes into the general budgets of schools. To ensure that that takes place, we need the eternal vigilance of governors, notably those with particular responsibility for special educational needs, such as the noble Baroness, Lady Sharp. The role that she performs on her governing body is essential to ensure that the interests of students with special educational needs are properly safeguarded. The issue, as ever, is how far we prescribe from the centre, which we need to keep under review. Elsewhere in our debates we are criticised for unduly prescribing to local authorities, let alone to schools, what they should do. Having earmarked this funding and seen that it is provided to local authorities, and making the requirements that we do in terms of the duties on governing bodies, we depend on them to take their responsibilities with the seriousness that I know the noble Baroness, Lady Sharp, and governors up and down the country do. I know that the noble Baroness, Lady Howe, in her role as president of the National Governors’ Association seeks to reinforce with governors the acute importance of their responsibilities in respect of special educational needs. We support the NGA and governors in advice and guidance that we provide. Most local authorities provide training in this regard, but we need all local authorities to rise to the standards of the best. As Minister with responsibility for special educational needs, I completely agree with the noble Lord, Lord Elton, on the importance of early identification and intervention. All maintained schools have an ongoing statutory duty to identify and make suitable provision for children with special educational needs. As the noble Lord, Lord Lucas, said, the special educational needs code of practice highlights early identification and intervention as an important feature of effective provision for SEN. We are promoting greater awareness and improved confidence in recognising and addressing children’s special educational needs through our inclusion development programme. The first phase of that, which is a systematic programme of training for teachers, includes resource materials for early education providers, schools and initial teacher training institutions on dyslexia and speech, language and communications needs. Subsequent phases will produce similar materials for autism and behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. The Children’s Plan, published last December, acknowledged that more needs to be done.