Government Minister responds to NDCS Save Services for Deaf Children campaign

Local authorities must prioritise frontline services for vulnerable children, SEN Minister states.  

In a letter to NDCS, Department for Education minister, Sarah Teather, writes that:

“I have been very clear to local authorities that I expect them to make vital frontline services to vulnerable children a priority.”

The Minister also goes on highlight that the Department for Education has protected the schools budget, from which specialist support services for deaf children are funded. She states her disappointment at the cuts identified by NDCS’s Save Services for Deaf Children campaign and her concern that local authorities may be failing to consult with parents on these changes.

However, NDCS is disappointed by the apparent reluctance within the Department to use its legal powers to intervene to make alternative arrangements where cuts are being made. NDCS also continues to be concerned by an assumption within the Department that most deaf children with severe/profound hearing loss have a statement of special educational need, even though NDCS is unaware of any figures that back up this assumption.

NDCS is calling on parents and other supporters to get behind the Save Services for Deaf Children campaign by contacting their MP and sharing intelligence about local cuts via a special NDCS interactive map.

More information

Find out how you can support the Save Services for Deaf Children campaign >

Letter from Sarah Teather MP to NDCS, 14 June 2011 (37 kb)

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