A question in the House of Commons on Thursday raised the issue of how our Trainee Teachers are prepared to educate pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN). The question was answered by Nick Gibb (Minister for Schools and MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton) on behalf of Nicky Morgan. He ended his answer with this statement speaking about Initial Teacher Training or ITT: “The government has commissioned an independent working group made up of expert representatives from the sector (including an SEN specialist) to develop a framework of core ITT content. The group, chaired by Stephen Munday CBE (CEO, Comberton Academies Trust), will be considering the extent to which SEN and disabilities should be covered in the framework.” This is a vital issue and these considerations are matters that should be taking place in a manner that allows a wide range of voices and experiences to influence the ideas of the working group. It is also important that groups such as this are drawn from a wide range of backgrounds. One of my own particular concern is that of pupils who suffer from hearing loss. A form of disability that is often overlooked by policy makers, particularly within education. I have googled the working group and searched the Department for Education website to find it, so far I have drawn a blank. It is also rather concerning that on the same day that Nick Gibb responded regarding these issues, the same Comberton Trust was being criticised by the MP for Peterborough in the House of Commons  for its performance in delivering mainstream education in one of their Academies. Let us hope that Mr Munday is the right person for this working group and that he can do something to persuade Nick Gibbs and Nicky Morgan to get the details into the public domain regarding his working group, while dealing with the other matters on the agenda of his Trust!