N-E MP's Bill clears Commons

8:16pm Friday 16th May 2008

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ONE of the region's MPs was celebrating last night after her Bill to press for faster help for children with special educational needs cleared the Commons.

Sharon Hodgson, Labour MP for Gateshead East and Washington West - who has a severely dyslexic son - wants tougher laws to force the government to collect data on the help available.

It follows fears of a "patchwork quilt" of provision, because many local authorities are failing to meet their duties towards the most vulnerable children.

Ms Hodgson has explained to MPs how her her son Joseph was not diagnosed as dyslexic until he was ten, after years of struggling at school - making her determined to help others in a similar situation.

The MP said today that her Bill would improve "our understanding of what works for children with special educational needs and enable us to share good practice".

She was prompted to ask after tabling parliamentary questions about how different local authorities were performing, only to be told that such information was not collected by government.

Ms Hodgson's Special Educational Needs (Information) Bill completed its Commons stages and now goes to the House of Lords, giving it an excellent chance of becoming law.

During the debate, children's minister Kevin Brennan pledged to investigate claims that some councils were failing children, amid claims that only five per cent were complying with the law.