Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of teachers of the deaf in teaching deaf children.

We do not hold information centrally on effectiveness of teachers of the deaf and the quality of support that they provide to deaf children and their families.

In order to teach a class of pupils with hearing impairment, a teacher must hold a mandatory qualification in addition to qualified teacher status.

Ofsted, through its inspection of individual schools, considers the extent to which the education that they provide meets the needs of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and disabilities. Inspectors will consider the quality of teaching provided to improve learning for pupils, including those with hearing impairments, which may include support provided by teachers of the deaf.