Manuela Perteghella
Main Page: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)Department Debates - View all Manuela Perteghella's debates with the Department for Education
(1 day, 18 hours ago)
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Charlotte Cane (Ely and East Cambridgeshire) (LD)
One of the things that shocked me most when I was elected was how much we are failing children with special educational needs. We all get those emails in our inbox, and they are heartrending. When we meet those parents, we can see the stress and the strain etched in their faces, and we can only imagine what it is like for the child to be in a school where they feel that they are not understood and they are not supported. How we are treating these people at the moment is shocking.
I really welcome the fact that the Government are trying to do something to change that situation and to make it better. I worry, though, that we need to make sure that there are the resources to deliver what those families deserve. Obviously that means money, but it also means the educational psychologists and the other expertise that we need, and proper training for all school staff so they know how to deal with the various needs of the children in their school. I also worry that parents cannot and must not lose the ability to take action to fight for their children’s rights.
Manuela Perteghella (Stratford-on-Avon) (LD)
Does my hon. Friend agree that strengthening inclusion in mainstream schools and maintaining legally enforceable protections for children and young people should not be competing games?
Charlotte Cane
I agree; we must not set things up in competition.
I would like to ask the Minister three questions. First, what is she going to do to make sure that every school in every area has the specialist resources it needs to deliver for its children? How is she going to make sure that rural areas such as mine in Ely and East Cambridgeshire have access to those resources for all schools and all children? It takes longer and therefore it costs more to get those across the area. What is she going to put in place to make sure that parents retain the right to fight for and enforce their children’s rights?