Education and Inspections Bill - Report Stage: Special Educational Needs

Speech by Annette Brooke MP delivered to House of Commons on Wed 24th May 2006

Annette Brooke (Mid-Dorset and North Poole) (LD): The hon. Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr. Hayes) suggested that Warnock had been pernicious, but I remind the House of what was happening pre-Warnock. We need to reflect on that, because we certainly do not want to go back to a situation in which children were institutionalised, regardless of the nature of their special needs, with no entitlement to a full and rich curriculum, and without the ability to mix with other children that they have today. We have had one of those infamous pendulum swings that take place in education over time and, possibly, it has swung too far. If the Minister shows total resistance to all the amendments, there is a denial that something is wrong, or at least a pretence that everything is right when, clearly, it is not.

It is well researched and proven that the main inclusion agenda, which I broadly support, has simply been under-resourced. The problem with inclusion is that it was never going to be a cheap option; it was going to cost money. Unfortunately, with pressure on resources, it has been seen as a cheaper option, which has led to certain actions. We must accept that under-resourcing has created a great deal of problems. First and foremost, it has created problems for those pupils who inadvertently, in so far as they are not in full control of their behaviour, make up 60 per cent. of exclusions. That is unhelpful for everybody. New clause 31, which we want to strongly support, picks up that point. When there is an exclusion, a full assessment of the special needs of the child involved is required.

As we know, parents do not feel fully supported and involved in the current system, which causes problems, and many teachers in mainstream schools find it hard to cope because of lack of resources. The report commissioned by the National Union of Teachers, "The Cost of Inclusion", has made a valuable contribution to the debate in highlighting the wide variety of special needs. Given that there is such an array of special needs, we should not use a single terminology. Obviously, individual children will need their requirements met in different ways.

The NUT report also highlights that, once one moves from primary to secondary school, the situation becomes even more complex. Children with special needs relating to mental health face a huge gap in resourcing for children's mental health services. While I acknowledge the massive increase in resources from the Government, I am sure that all Members know of inadequate provision locally. That puts enormous pressure on teachers and, although I have not seen the statistics, I think that that is a good reason for teachers deciding that they cannot cope any more. That is reflected in the point that more learning support assistants and teaching assistants—whatever we like to call them—are probably needed to make inclusion work. Being able to give more individual attention to children with behavioural difficulties is the No. 1 item that teachers mention to me. If they had that ability, they could make inclusion work. They want to make it work and feel proud when they do so, but it is difficult with all the constraints.

In relation to the points made by the hon. Member for Sheffield, Hillsborough (Ms Smith), I agree strongly about the need to have a spectrum of support. That fits into my argument that we have swung the pendulum instead of getting the right balance. It is important for a local education authority to give a strong, strategic lead on special educational needs. Perhaps we should not rehearse the arguments again, but with different types of schools, including those becoming more autonomous from the local education authority, it is more difficult to promote collaboration, which is especially important in relation to special needs, between all the schools within an LEA. A special school's numbers might fall for all sorts of reasons, but it is important to keep the resources of that school together and to have outreach workers with specialities supporting mainstream schools. However, such collaborative working requires the local education authority to pull everything together. I agree that pupil referral units, learning support areas and learning zones are needed in which specialist intensive help can be provided alongside mainstream school.

Training is essential and is probably mentioned in one of the many new clauses in the group. As we discussed in Committee, that applies to teachers, special educational needs co-ordinators and, I would add, the various teaching assistants—that is a slight omission from the new clause concerned. I still feel nervous about the idea that any closure of a special school should have the authority of the Secretary of State. I find that a surprising proposal from the Conservatives, as they keep telling me that the Secretary of State is causing all the closures in the first place with the policy being operated. I do not therefore know why they have such confidence in central Government in that respect.

My main concern is about the proposal that the Secretary of State shall consent to the closure of a special school only if there are places at nearby special schools. Of course, when one is managing a comprehensive policy for special educational needs, one might close a special school that does not have technology and science facilities—because it was built in the years when children with special educational needs were neglected—in order to build a brand-new unit, which might be on the site of a mainstream school. I cannot see the amendment concerned working.

Generally, we greatly support the sentiments behind this group of amendments, because this is a debate that should be held, and it would be a good idea, as the NUT's report suggests, to have an independent review of inclusion. Perhaps we should stop pretending that we can carry out a policy of inclusion on the cheap.

Mr. Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op): The hon. Lady might know that the Education and Skills Committee is nearing the end of a thorough inquiry into special educational needs. I have been listening intently to the discussion, but in relation to the automatic suggestion that there should be an independent inquiry, I assure her that the House has an effective means of carrying out good, independent inquiries.

Annette Brooke: I thank the hon. Gentleman. I know, of course, that the Select Committee is carrying out that inquiry. The suggestion came from an earlier debate on special educational needs and I remember him responding during that debate. I hope that I was not ignoring the role of the Select Committee by pointing out that we need to have this debate about cost and make sure that the money is following the pupils, especially in this area.

Apart from the caveats that I have mentioned, we are sympathetic to the new clauses. I hope that the Minister will take our comments on board and give us some indication of the way forward. The severe pressures in mainstream school, which are not serving pupils, teachers or parents well, cannot continue.