Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Thursday, February 9, 2023

Official Report 1064KB pdf

Point of Order

On a point of order, Deputy Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance and help on an important matter, which I believe lies at the heart of the business of Parliament. It cannot be said too often that it is fundamental that members of Parliament have opportunities to ask questions and to receive appropriate and timely answers from ministers. I know how keenly you, as Deputy Presiding Officer, and the Presiding Officer guard the public reputation of Parliament and the rights of its members, including the right to carry out the business of the people of Scotland who seek support and help from them.

I wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, Shirley-Anne Somerville, on 1 December to seek her advice and help in respect of a burning concern that is shared by several of my constituents, all of whom contacted me separately to intercede on their behalf. The concern that they have relates to the level of support for children with autism or additional support needs in Falkirk schools.

I will limit my description of those cases in order to preserve the anonymity of those who are involved. Put simply, and to stress the urgency of the need for help from the cabinet secretary, those children are getting little to no support in their schooling. Their parents are doing the very best they can to help. Each case is, of course, unique, and there is complexity, but there is a problem with the provision of an appropriate level of support from Falkirk Council, which is causing immeasurable stress and upset. On top of that, the children and adolescent mental health services—CAMHS—waiting times in Forth Valley make getting a formal diagnosis of autism very difficult.

That those children have identified and diagnosed support needs highlights how clear cut their cases are and the extent to which that support is needed. There are clearly insufficient resources in place to meet those needs in the education system in Falkirk, so the children who are going into that system are being failed—badly so—which will have painful and long-lasting impacts on the children and their families.

I wrote to the cabinet secretary to request that an urgent investigation be undertaken to understand the reasons for that resource deficiency and to ensure that commensurate steps be taken with equal immediacy to rectify the situation. I have not had an answer. I was given a reference number—202200333763. There is a problem in Falkirk for pupils with severe needs, which needs sorted out quickly.

I wrote again over two weeks ago to the cabinet secretary and still have had no answer. Can you please help me with the concerns of my constituents? What more can or should I do to receive an answer to my inquiries from the cabinet secretary?

Thank you, Mr Kerr, for your contribution—[Interruption.] Can I be the one who decides things? I am in the chair; I am the referee. Thank you.

I thank you for your contribution, Mr Kerr. I hear what you are saying. Obviously, what you have said is now on the record. You will know from your reading of the standing orders of Parliament that the time within which the Government responds or otherwise to correspondence from members does not engage those standing orders, and hence does not engage me as chair. However, the member will, I am sure, be aware of other potential ways in which to pursue those important matters—for example, through written questions, with respect to which timed deadlines are set forth in the standing orders of Parliament.

I hope that that is helpful.