The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act became law on 14 November 2005. "The Act aims to ensure that all children and young people are provided with the necessary support to help them work towards achieving their full potential." (Supporting Children's Learning - code of practice 2005). The Act introduced the concept of additional support needs.
What are Additional Support Needs?
If your child needs extra help or support in addition to that which is normally provided they can be said to have 'additional support needs'. Children may need additional support for a short or long period of time and for a variety of reasons. The reasons can include:
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social or emotional difficulties
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problems at home
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being particularly gifted
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a physical disability
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moving house frequently
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behavioural difficulties
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bullying
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a sensory impairment or communication problem
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being a young carer or parent
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having English as a second language
These are some of the reasons for additional support. However, there are many others. It is important to recognise that additional support needs will always depend on each individual child.
Any number of different circumstances can affect a child's ability to learn. Support may need to come from health, social work or some voluntary organisations as well as from Education. We will all work together with parents to make sure the support your child needs is properly planned to help them to make progress in their learning.
How do I find out if my child has additional support needs?
Your child's nursery/school will monitor the progress and learning of all its children. If a teacher has concerns about an individual child, steps will be taken to ensure that any difficulties are identified and planned for. Parents will be kept informed about their child's progress and of any difficulties the child may be having.
If you are concerned or worried about your child's progress you can contact their nursery/school and ask for an assessment to find out whether or not they have additional support needs. The Education Authority will normally comply with your request unless it is considered to be unreasonable. Reasons for not complying with a request for assessment include:
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your child's progress is within the range expected for their age and stage
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an assessment has recently been carried out and appropriate action taken
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Transition from home to nursery for children with Additional Support Needs
The information gathering process will start at least 6 months before your child starts at pre-school. The SureStart Educational Support Service may be involved in this process.
The Additional Support for Learning Team will take all the information provided into account and work with the nursery to ensure that your child is appropriately supported in their learning.
Transition from Pre-school to Primary School
If your child has additional support needs it is very important that each transition is as smooth as possible and that communications between everyone involved are as effective as possible.
At each stage of the transition process you will be fully consulted about your child's needs and involved in planning for them. Information will be gathered from all the professionals who are involved to enable detailed planning to take place.
Planning for transition will begin at least 6 months before the move to primary school takes place. The Additional Support for Learning Co-ordinator for the school, will ensure that information is collated and preparations are made to ensure that your child's learning continues to be appropriately supported. Transition meetings will be held to co-ordinate the process.
These will usually be chaired by the Manager/HeadTeacher of the nursery. You will be involved in all the meetings and consulted on the plans for your child.
Who can I contact if I want to know more?
If you have any further questions or would like more information please contact:
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Individualised Educational Programme (IEP)
An Individualised Educational Programme helps teachers (and other school staff) to plan what children have been learning and make sure that they have the help they need. Teachers should involve pupils in planning their IEP.
What is an Individualised Educational Programme?
An Individualised Educational Programme sets out the learning targets for a child. In most cases an IEP will be produced in the three core curriculum areas of Numeracy, Literacy and Personal and Social Education.
The core area of Personal and Social Education will often include planning for children who need support with their social skills and behaviour. For a small number of children an IEP may include other curricular areas.
The IEP contains:
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a profile of the child detailing strengths and areas for development
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details of the professionals involved in supporting the child
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long term and short term learning targets
Long term targets are those targets which it is expected a child might achieve in a school year. Short term targets are targets which can be achieved during a single term.
Targets will only be set in the curriculum area where support is needed. This means that if a child is good at maths but needs help with reading, the IEP targets will only be set for reading.
Who should have an IEP?
An IEP will be prepared for children who:
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require support for their learning and/or behaviour
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require significant adjustments to be made to the curriculum
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require the support of a number of school staff or professionals.
Will I be involved in the planning for my child's IEP?
Yes. You will be consulted about the targets to be included in the IEP. You will be given the opportunity to comment on the targets and to say how you would like to be involved in helping your child achieve their targets.
Who else is involved?
Your child's Head Teacher has responsibility for establishing an IEP. In many cases the responsibility is delegated to the class teacher and the Support for Learning Teacher who will contribute to the drafting of the IEP. They will consult with any other people who work with your child. This can include colleagues and other agencies like NHS Forth Valley|, Social Work and the Educational Psychology Service.
When will the IEP be reviewed?
The short term targets in an IEP are normally reviewed termly by the school. Long term targets are normally reviewed annually. Everyone involved is invited to attend a review and planning meeting to participate in setting the targets for the new school year.
What if I don't agree with the targets being set?
If you feel that the IEP for your child is not appropriate or has set the wrong targets you should discuss this with the school. The school may wish to take advice from a member of the Additional Support for Learning Team. If necessary a meeting can be held to consider your concerns and make any agreed adjustments to the IEP.
If a difficulty about an IEP cannot be resolved with your child's school you can request mediation. Information on the mediation service provided by RESOLVE can be found in a separate leaflet which is available from your local school.
Who can I contact if I want to know more?
If you need more information or would like to talk about your child's needs you should contact their school. If you have any further questions or would like more information please contact:
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Co-ordinated Support Plan (CSP)
In order to benefit from school education some children who have additional support needs will need support from school and from other services like Social Work and the NHS.
A Co-ordinated Support Plan helps to make sure that all the services work together to meet your child's learning needs.
How do I know if my child should be considered for a Co-ordinated Support Plan?
The law says a Coordinated Support Plan must be established for a child who has additional support needs if all the following conditions apply.
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A child's additional support needs arise from complex or multiple factors.
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The additional support needs are likely to last for more than one year.
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He or she requires a high level of support from education and at least one other agency in order to meet his or her learning targets.
Complex Factors are those which have a significant adverse effect on learning. Multiple Factors are not by themselves complex but taken together they have a significant adverse effect on learning.
Support from other agencies
Consideration will be given to how often your child needs support, who is involved and whether this support is required in order to make sure the agreed learning targets are met.
Your Rights
You have the right to ask us to establish whether your child should be considered for a Coordinated Support Plan. A young person aged 16 or over can make the request themselves.
You can also ask us for a specific type of assessment to help decide if a Coordinated Support Plan is needed. However, you can't ask for a particular person or organisation to make the assessment.
What is in a Co-ordinated Support Plan?
The plan will contain information about:
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your child's skills and capabilities
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your child's additional support needs
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your child's educational objectives
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the support your child needs and who will provide it (the plan does not name staff as they may change)
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the person responsible for co-ordinating the plan
How often is a Co-ordinated Support Plan reviewed?
The school will review the plan at least once a year. If you are concerned about progress or you think changes are needed you can ask for an early review.
Are parents involved?
Parents are crucial in the partnership process undertaken when a Coordinated Support Plan is being considered or is being drawn up. Parents have a key role to play, both in drafting a Coordinated Support Plan and in participating in its implementation through the planning and review processes.
You will be consulted as the plan is developed and your views on its contents will be sought at each stage. Your child's views will also be sought whenever possible.
Co-ordinated Support Plans detail the support that a pupil needs at school to make sure that all the people who support them know exactly what is going on and can work together.
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ASL Mediation
The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 places duties on Local Authorities to provide access to independent mediation for resolving disputes with parents and carers of children and young people with additional support needs.
What is mediation?
Mediation is a voluntary process during which a neutral third person (a mediator) helps those involved in disagreement or dispute to work towards finding a mutually acceptable agreement.
How can mediation help you?
Mediation helps to build trust between everyone involved. It encourages everyone to understand what is happening and take part in making decisions. Mediation helps us all to agree on what is best for your child and to find the way forward.
What do you need to do to take part in mediation?
You need to be able to openly discuss the issues concerning your child's education by bringing any information that is felt to be important/relevant to the process. You must also be prepared to listen to the views of the other parties involved.
What takes place in mediation?
Each person has the opportunity to express his/her concerns and talk about the needs of the child. Past, current and future plans will be discussed, but the goal will be to reach agreement on the most appropriate plan for the child. Some issues suitable for mediation include:
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school placement
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level of provision for a child with additional support needs
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exclusion
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transition of record of needs to a Co-ordinated Support Plan
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resolving communications between parents and staff
RESOLVE: ASL is an independent mediation service available in Scotland as an option to resolve conflict throughout additional support needs issues in education.
A RESOLVE: ASL mediator is a trained independent and neutral third party who will:
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work with services and families to resolve disputes
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help with communication and encourage mutual understanding
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help the parties to arrive at the outcomes/agreements themselves
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establish a basis for effective parent/professional partnerships
A RESOLVE: ASL mediator does not make decisions or recommend solutions.
RESOLVE: ASL can approach parties in disputes and offer this service. However, mediation is a voluntary process so all parties involved must agree to take part.
There is no cost to parents or carers and young people who are involved in mediation.
Useful contacts/websites
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PreFCAT
PreFCAT is a co-ordinated approach to identify and assess the needs of children under five years who may have additional support needs. This service is for children (under 5) for whom there is concern about their development and who may benefit from assessment by a number of different professionals.
Professionals and parents work together in this process to coordinate referrals and identify/assess developmental problems. It provides a way to multi-disciplinary assessment and supports children with all types of developmental difficulties including Autistic Spectrum Disorder.
The PreFCAT team consists of professionals from health, education and social work. If you are unsure about whether a child should be referred, you should contact either your GP, Health Visitor or Education Services.
Referral forms are available from your Health Visitor, Nursery Establishments, Education Services (McLaren House, Marchmont Avenue, Polmont) and the Children with Disabilities Team (Oxgangs Road, Grangemouth).
Should you require any further information, please contact:
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Education Services
McLaren House
Marchmont Avenue
Polmont
FK2 0NZ
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01324 506627/506626
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SureStart Educational Support Service
This service provides home visits and support to parents of children with additional support needs until the child starts school.
Parents and carers usually find it helpful to discuss the developmental milestones of their children with a Health Visitor/Public health Nurse, who will be able to advise parents on seeking support from the SureStart Educational Support Service, as will GPs and Paediatricians.
SureStart welcomes referrals directly from parents and carers as well as other professionals involved with the child and family. Referrals are considered regularly by the Pupil Support Resource Group. A referral may result in:
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acceptance
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re-direction to another agency
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advice on alternative sources of support
Key features of the SureStart Service
The Service supports the development of the individual child through:
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early contact
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inclusive and supportive learning experiences
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appropriate developmental learning opportunities
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support to the child within the family
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practical help to parents and carers to promote their child's development
The SureStart Team work in consultation and co-operation with nursery staff to:
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provide parents, carers and early years staff with strategies to support developmental and educational progress
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help to develop Individualised Educational Programmes (IEPs)
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support children and their families at the point of transition to nursery
SureStart Referral forms are available from Health Visitors/Public Health Nurses, GPs and Falkirk Council Education Services at:
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McLaren House
Marchmont Avenue
Polmont
Falkirk
FK2 0NZ
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01324 506626
Referral forms should be returned to the ASL Office, Education Services at the above address.
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