MEDICAL advances could spell the end of a mini-school for sick children at the Royal Bolton Hospital.

Education chiefs are looking to see if they still need a permanent class with full-time teacher on the children's ward.

They say new ways of treating sick children have now cut the average stay in hospital to just two days.

And children who stay in for weeks on end are often too ill to do school work while they are being treated.

Now education chiefs are considering merging the children's ward class with the home tuition service.

Hospital visits by home tuition tutors would be used to make sure sick children do not miss out on their school work but the future of the classroom has yet to be discussed.

Cameron Chisholm, manager of the Special Needs Service, said no decisions had been taken and a consultation exercise is currently underway.

Time

He said: "A few years ago children stayed in hospital for a greater length of time than they are doing now.

"Not all, but the vast majority of children are now in and out of hospital very quickly and very sick children often have difficulty accessing education because of the degree of illness.

"A number of authorities have integrated home tuition and hospital services. Children who are well enough still have access to education."

The change is part of a major review of services for children who, for various reasons, are educated outside mainstream schools.

A special group, which includes social services and the various education departments, has been set up to track each individual child's progress.

The Children Off Roll Action Group will bring together all the information about each child to ensure, where possible, they return to mainstream schools.

The review will eventually mean targets for each specialist service with managers being charged with raising levels of achievement and improving behaviour, attendance and personal and social education.

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