AQW 7605/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 27/02/2024
Answered On Date: 29/07/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education how he will work with the Department of Health to address shortages in the speech and language therapist workforce which are impacting on speech and language provision in schools.

Answer:

Speech and language provision has been identified as a key priority area for the department as part of the emergent implementation plans flowing from the End to End (E2E) Review of Special Educational Needs (SEN).

The department is working closely with the Department of Health (DoH) as part of the joint Health/Education oversight group to develop work in this area, part of which is focussed on workforce planning and provision.