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Deafblind Boy's Education Hampered by Staff Shortage
24 Jun
Summary
- A deafblind boy faces educational isolation due to insufficient BSL-qualified teachers.
- A charity found 65% of north-west England authorities lack specialist teachers for deafblind children.
- Parents are teaching their deafblind son BSL at home due to school support gaps.
A profoundly deaf and visually impaired 10-year-old boy's educational progress is being significantly impacted by a lack of teaching staff skilled in British Sign Language (BSL). His mother, Caroline, expressed concern that her son, Thomas, is experiencing isolation and not achieving 'meaningful' learning at his special school.
Caroline described the support for children with multi-sensory impairments (MSI) as a 'postcode lottery,' highlighting that while his MSI teacher covers multiple schools and his BSL teaching assistant only provides one hour of one-to-one support weekly, this is insufficient.
Compounding the issue, a Freedom of Information request by the charity Sense found that 65% of local authorities in the north-west of England have no specialist teachers to support deafblind children. Statistics from the Department for Education indicate 832 deafblind children across 25 local authorities in the region.
Sense chief executive James Watson-O'Neill urged the government to address the 'critical shortage' of specialist staff, emphasizing that limited support denies deafblind children their right to education and a good start in life. The school stated it collaborates with various external partners to ensure the best outcomes for its children. The Department for Education highlighted ongoing SEND reforms and investment to improve specialist support accessibility.
