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Appearing before the Educational Panel at the Assembly, Yolande Burgess of London Councils said that some schools are ‘very nervous’ about whether they can meet the needs of children with learning difficulties.
The Education Panel was convened to examine a London Assembly report which outlined the need for an additional 5,250 special school places over the next decade.
The report also called for an extra 60,000 primary places and 105,000 secondary places to meet the demands of a growing population.
‘Mis-allocation of funds’
Priya Dutta of the Campaign for Real Education believes the problem is not caused by a shortage of funds.
‘Looking at the situation on the ground, the resources are incredibly tight. And it’s not to say that we don’t have funds available because actually the education budget is £9 billion, which is an awful lot of money
‘So I think somewhere between funds being allocated and the funds reaching the schools, something needs to be re-assessed.
‘And I think it’s probably mis-allocation of funds’.
We need a ‘culture of support’
Mike Storey is the Education spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords. He blames the Government for creating a competitive environment in schools.
‘We have to move to a culture in our school system of support. A culture which doesn’t sort of pit school against school, pupil against pupil.
‘Schools are about educating the whole pupil. It’s about providing a broad and balanced curriculum’.
SEN needs going ‘up and up’
London’s population is predicted to rise to almost 10 million by the middle of the next decade, leading to concerns about how the capital can cater for a growing school population.
Susan Hall AM, who represents the Conservatives in the London Assembly, told City News that the requirements of children with special educational needs are ‘going up and up’.
‘This is the problem with building more and more and more. We’re going to need more schools, more doctors, more hospitals, more everything’, she said.
The Government insists that it is committed to ensuring that ‘no child is left behind’. The Department for Education recently announced an extra £215 million to support children with special educational needs.
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Appearing before the Educational Panel at the Assembly, Yolande Burgess of London Councils said that some schools are ‘very nervous’ about whether they can meet the needs of children with learning difficulties.
The Education Panel was convened to examine a London Assembly report which outlined the need for an additional 5,250 special school places over the next decade.
The report also called for an extra 60,000 primary places and 105,000 secondary places to meet the demands of a growing population.
‘Mis-allocation of funds’
Priya Dutta of the Campaign for Real Education believes the problem is not caused by a shortage of funds.
‘Looking at the situation on the ground, the resources are incredibly tight. And it’s not to say that we don’t have funds available because actually the education budget is £9 billion, which is an awful lot of money
‘So I think somewhere between funds being allocated and the funds reaching the schools, something needs to be re-assessed.
‘And I think it’s probably mis-allocation of funds’.
We need a ‘culture of support’
Mike Storey is the Education spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords. He blames the Government for creating a competitive environment in schools.
‘We have to move to a culture in our school system of support. A culture which doesn’t sort of pit school against school, pupil against pupil.
‘Schools are about educating the whole pupil. It’s about providing a broad and balanced curriculum’.
SEN needs going ‘up and up’
London’s population is predicted to rise to almost 10 million by the middle of the next decade, leading to concerns about how the capital can cater for a growing school population.
Susan Hall AM, who represents the Conservatives in the London Assembly, told City News that the requirements of children with special educational needs are ‘going up and up’.
‘This is the problem with building more and more and more. We’re going to need more schools, more doctors, more hospitals, more everything’, she said.
The Government insists that it is committed to ensuring that ‘no child is left behind’. The Department for Education recently announced an extra £215 million to support children with special educational needs.
