Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support parents of deaf children in Bournemouth East constituency.

The department recognises the importance of supporting parents of all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including deaf children or those with a hearing impairment.

On 2 March 2023, the government published the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan in response to the Green Paper. The Improvement Plan outlines the department’s approach to building capacity to achieve the behaviours and culture required for the successful implementation of these policy reforms. These reforms will give families greater confidence that their child will be able to fulfil their potential through improved mainstream provision in their local setting.

For those children and young people with SEND who do require an education, health and care (EHC) plan and specialist provision, the department will ensure they get prompt access to the support they need, and that parents do not face an adversarial system to secure this.

We will strengthen accountability across the system so that everyone is held to account for supporting children and young people with SEND.

The department also works closely with Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local authority to ensure that all children’s needs are met, including support with its written statement of action.