Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to fund a national programme of training for education staff working with children and young people with speech, language and communication needs, similar to that previously funded for autism.

Since 2010, the department has funded the development of training and resources to ensure that the schools’ workforce is equipped to support pupils with specific types of special educational needs and disability (SEND), including speech language and communication needs (SLCN). These are hosted on the SEND and Education Foundation Gateway.

Our focus is on enabling education professionals to access and navigate these resources. We have agreed a new schools’ workforce contract with the National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN), to encourage schools to prioritise SEND within their CPD and school improvement plans, and to equip them to identify and meet their training needs. This contract will look across all types of impairment, including SLCN.

We are also continuing to fund The Communications Trust and are undertaking a gap analysis of training and resources for the schools’ workforce. The findings from this research will inform what programmes might be required in the future.