Deaf children lacking support

Some are unfairly disadvantaged by a lack of access to specially-trained staff in school, the National Deaf Children's Society study found.

This can lead to poor exam results, with deaf children less likely to achieve good GCSEs. The survey, called Hands up for Help, found 71 per cent of them failed to reach grades A* to C.

Visiting specialists called Teachers of the Deaf help school-age and pre-school children, but the amount of support varies across England and even between boroughs of the same city.

The highest ratio recorded by the survey was 142 children to each teacher, in the south east London borough of Bexley.

The lowest ratio, of six to one, was also found in London. The society would not name the areas with the lowest ratios, however, fearing those local authorities could cut their budgets as a result.

The Government is being urged to give deaf children equal access to help.