Oral Answers to Questions — Education – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 11 October 2010.
Greg Mulholland
Liberal Democrat, Leeds North West
2:30,
11 October 2010
What recent representations he has received on educational provision for children with special needs in Leeds North West Constituency.
Sarah Teather
The Minister of State, Department for Education
There have been no representations received from Leeds local authority in relation to provision for children with special educational needs in the authority's area. School organisation and special educational provision are matters for local consultation and determination, and where there are disagreements, they may be referred to the independent schools adjudicator for consideration.
Greg Mulholland
Liberal Democrat, Leeds North West
I thank the Minister for her answer. That there have been no representations contrasts with the fact that many representations have been made to Education Leeds and similar authorities. Lucy Holmes, my constituent, has finally, after a lengthy battle-10 years-had a review of her SEN statement, in which time, of course, her needs have changed substantially. What will the new Government do to ensure that children's needs are met by reviewing statements far more frequently?
John Bercow
Chair, Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, Chair, Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, Speaker of the House of Commons, Speaker of the House of Commons, Chair, Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, Chair, Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission
In the Leeds North West Constituency.
Sarah Teather
The Minister of State, Department for Education
The statement of needs is supposed to be reviewed annually, so it is a matter of concern if that is not happening and it has taken 10 years for such a review to take place. However, I should also say that too often a statement of needs is a static document that ends up in a drawer, rather than a dynamic document used as a basis for discussion and focusing on outcomes. Again, I hope that the green paper will begin to examine this issue.
In a general election, each Constituency chooses an MP to represent them. MPs have a responsibility to represnt the views of the Constituency in the House of Commons. There are 650 Constituencies, and thus 650 MPs. A citizen of a Constituency is known as a Constituent
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
A Green Paper is a tentative report of British government proposals without any commitment to action. Green papers may result in the production of a white paper.
From wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_paper
