Written question asked by Mark Todd (Labour) on Friday, 30 April 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 17 May 2004. It was answered by Baroness Hodge of Barking (Labour) on Monday, 17 May 2004 on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

Dept for Education and Skills

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to improve the availability of reading material for those with reading disabilities. - Inc figures.

Answer: Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps his Department is taking to improve the availability of reading material for those with reading disabilities. [171265] Margaret Hodge: During the past three financial years £220 million has been made available to schools through the Schools Access Initiative; a further £100 million per annum is available for the current year and for 2005-06. This funding can be used to produce materials in alternative formats to enable access to the curriculum for pupils who have reading disabilities. It is for schools and local education authorities (LEAs) to ensure that such materials are produced in good time, so that children with reading disabilities are not disadvantaged. Schools and LEAs can use the Department for Education and Skills' Special Educational Needs inclusion site to share information about materials that are required; in production; or already available in different formats.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 171265; 421 c705-6W
Session: 2003-04
Subjects: Disability Disability aids Reading Visual impairment Special educational needs Textbooks
Contains statistics: Yes
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk