Scottish Government

Report of the Consultation on the draft Additional Support for Learning Bill

Part 3 - Additional Support Needs and the Co-ordinated Support Plan

67. During the consultation on the draft Bill, it was evident that while most people welcomed the widening of special educational needs to additional support needs, many people were uncertain as to the types of conditions, circumstances or disabilities that would fall within this new term. People also wanted to know more about the criteria for a Co-ordinated Support Plan, which children would be eligible for a Co-ordinated Support Plan and, of course, what the Plan would actually look like. This section provides some examples and some explanations to help clarify matters. Of course, more detailed information and advice about additional support needs, identifying them, assessment and Co-ordinated Support Plans will be included in the proposed Code of Practice.

Additional Support Needs

68. Set out below are some of the many and varied circumstances that may impact on a child or young person's learning and give rise to the need for additional support. It should be noted that these examples are there to give a flavour and are not exhaustive. Neither will the circumstances outlined impact in the same way, or indeed at all, on different children. The effect any circumstance has on an individual's ability to benefit from school education is unique to them, as will be the support required to help them. For some, additional support will only be needed for weeks or months, while for others it will be for much longer, or indeed throughout their school years.

Criteria for a Co-ordinated Support Plan

69. In terms of section 2(1) of the Bill, a child or young person will require a Co-ordinated Support Plan if he or she has additional support needs arising from one or more complex factors, or multiple factors, which are likely to continue for more than a year, and those needs require significant additional support to be provided by one or more appropriate agencies, including the support other than education from the authority. The majority of people wanted clarification of what is actually meant by "complex" and "multiple".

70. A complex factor is one that affects most aspects of learning. It may be a long-term educational, medical or other factor. For example, a complex factor could arise from severe learning difficulties, a sensory impairment such as blindness, or a physical disability such as cerebral palsy or other conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), dyslexia or Autistic Spectrum Disorder. More than one complex factor may be present.

71. Multiple factors are a combination of two or more factors be they educational, medical, social, emotional, behavioural or other factors, but which are not by themselves complex factors. However, in combination these may have the same effect as a complex factor. For example, a child's additional support needs may arise from multiple factors such as being bullied, poor self-esteem and living with parents who have addiction and low income problems. In general, factors may be expressed by the child or young person through poor anger management, a history of poor progress, psychological or mental health problems, or may be external such as circumstances within the child or young person's family.

72. However, what may be complex or multiple factors for one child may not be for another. It is the effect of the factor(s) and not the factor(s) or diagnosis label alone. An important aim of the new system proposed in the Bill is that it is child-centred. It focuses on the individual child, not the label of a diagnosis or social or other circumstances. In all cases it is how these factors impact on that child's learning that is important. Every child or young person is an individual.

Circumstances that may impact on a child's learning and give rise to Additional Support Needs
(Note: not all these circumstances will necessarily be barriers to learning.)

The content of a Co-ordinated Support Plan

73. Many people commented during the consultation, that they would like to have more details of the format and content of the Co-ordinated Support Plan. The Bill sets out what will be contained in the Co-ordinated Support Plan but the detailed form and content will be laid out in regulations. Careful consideration will be given to what the plans will look like, to make sure that they contain all relevant information and are laid out in a coherent and accessible format. Comments made during the passage of the Bill will be considered in the drafting of the regulations which will be done once the Bill is enacted. There will then be a further period of consultation on the regulations themselves, which will allow a further opportunity for observation and comment. Further information and guidance on Co-ordinated Support Plans will be included in the Code of Practice. What follows is a description of the information that must be in the Plan as prescribed in section 7 of the Bill plus an indication of some of the other information that may be in it.

• The reasons for the individual's additional support needs must be detailed in the Co-ordinated Support Plan. In addition to describing the difficulties the child or young person faces, there may be a description of the positive features of the child or young person's life, including his or her skills and capabilities noted in the plan.
• Details of the planned learning outcomes (educational objectives) to be achieved that will ensure that the individual benefits from school education must be included, for example what needs to be learned.
• Details of the additional support required to achieve the planned learning outcomes and who will provide that support must be included for example, details of anger management sessions from a social worker or physiotherapy from a physiotherapist.
• The school the individual is to attend must be noted.
• The details of the nominated person who will co-ordinate the plan must be recorded. This is the person who will manage the day-to-day implementation. While the education authority will be responsible for the co-ordination of the plan, the co-ordinator role can be delegated to an individual in another agency if they are more appropriate for the child or young person.
• Contact information for a named officer, from whom information and advice may be sought, must be detailed.
• As might be expected, the Co-ordinated Support Plan is likely to contain biographical details of the child or young person to whom it refers and may include contact details (for example, address and telephone number) for the child or young person and his or her parent or carer.
• Everyone involved in drawing up the Co-ordinated Support Plan may need to sign the plan to acknowledge their input and involvement. There may also be details included on the timescale for review of the plan, (these timescales will be set out in regulations) and for the transfer or discontinuance of it.
• There may be an annex to the Co-ordinated Support Plan which will simply record the progress the child or young person is making towards achieving the planned learning outcomes. This could, for example, be used in the classroom to plan lessons or to inform reviews. This is different to what was proposed in the draft Bill narrative. The annex will no longer record minor changes in circumstances and diagnosis or to the provision required to support the child or young person's additional support needs.