MP supports campaign for better sounding schools
12 June 2009
Patrick McLoughlin MP for West Derbyshire has joined the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS) in calling for new schools to meet national building standards so that all children can listen and learn effectively. NDCS says only 21% of the local authorities who responded in England stated they had new schools in their area with acoustics that meet the Government’s building standards.
High quality acoustics in the classroom are necessary for all children to be able to learn, and for deaf children they are vital. Yet many local authorities are not testing whether new schools comply with the standards. Only 60% stated they did testing, despite a government recommendation that they should do so.
On Tuesday 9 June, Patrick met a group of deaf teenagers to discuss the harmful effect poor acoustics in the classroom can have on their education.
Patrick explained:
"I fully support this campaign. It was fantastic to meet deaf young people to discuss how poor acoustics can affect them at school. It does not seem right to put a child in a classroom in which they cannot learn. Barriers such as this must be broken down if we want to give deaf children the best chance of achieving their full educational potential."
Brian Gale, NDCS Director of Policy and Campaigns, adds:
"Being able to hear what the teacher is saying is essential to learning. Yet the Government is allowing many millions of pounds to be spent on building schools that are unsuitable for children to listen and learn in, and in which deaf children experience particular difficulty. As the majority of deaf children now attend mainstream school, it is crucial that new schools don’t just look good, but sound good. We are calling on the Government to urgently introduce a mandatory test for all new school buildings to ensure they comply with government standards, to stop generations of deaf children from missing out on a quality education."
Official statistics show that last year, deaf children in England were 42% less likely than all children to achieve five GCSEs at grades A* to C (including English and Maths), and poor acoustics are proven to be one of a range of barriers to their progress. Deafness is not a learning disability, and given the right support, most deaf children should be achieving on a par with their hearing peers.
