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Consultation on the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004
Draft Code of Practice
Reference: Additional Support Needs - 02

FOREWORD

1. The final version of the Code will carry a joint Ministerial foreword.

2. INTRODUCTION

   Purpose of the Act

1. The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 ("the Act") introduces a new framework for providing support for children and young people who require some additional help with their learning. 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. It also promotes collaborative working among all those supporting children and young people.

2. Purpose of the Code

3. The Code provides guidance on the Act's provisions and includes features of good practice on how these can be applied. It provides advice on the new duties on education authorities and other agencies to support children's and young people's learning. It includes some scenarios which aim to illustrate how additional support needs can be met in a range of ways. It also sets out new arrangements for avoiding and resolving differences between families and authorities.

4. Status of the Code

5. Education authorities and appropriate agencies, such as NHS Boards and social work services, are under a duty to have regard to the Code when carrying out their functions under the Act. They must not ignore it. The Code is designed to help them make effective decisions but it cannot be prescriptive about what is required in individual circumstances. The Code includes scenarios and examples of good practice to illustrate the Act's main provisions. These do not offer definitive interpretations of the legislation since this is a function for a court of law.

6. Other legislation

7. The Code cross-refers to other legislation where this is necessary.

8. Who should read the Code

9. Employees of education authorities and other appropriate agencies carrying out their functions under the Act are under a duty to have regard to the Code. Parents and young people will wish to refer to the Code for information and advice on exercising their rights.
10. Examples of professionals across agencies who are under a duty to have regard to the Act, or others who may find the Code useful when carrying out duties under other legislation, include:

Multi-agency planners: policy officers, planners and service managers working in children's services planning networks across education health, social care, further education and training.

Education: education directorate, head teachers, teachers, classroom assistants, educational psychologists, guidance teachers and staff in schools and nursery provision, including partner providers for pre-school education.

Early Years and childcare: nursery nurses, early years workers in family centres, staff delivering out of school provision.

Health: health visitors, public health nurses, community child health teams, paediatricians, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, other allied health professionals, clinical psychologists, and medical practitioners in paediatrics, general practice and child and family psychiatry.

Social work: social workers, residential child care staff, support workers, adoption and foster care service staff and social workers with responsibility for child protection and looked after children.

Voluntary sector: staff working in the whole range of children's services

Other agencies: professionals in other agencies who may be involved in integrated assessment teams, for example, childcare fieldworkers, youth workers, Children's Reporters, police, schools/community liaison team, community workers, staff working in careers services and in higher and further education.

How to use the Code

• Section 1 sets the framework for additional support for learning in the wider legislative and policy context.
• Section 2 describes what additional support needs are, sets out the new duties on education authorities and appropriate agencies, and outlines the rights of parents and young people.
• Section 3 sets out what the Act has to say about identifying and assessing additional support needs, and making and reviewing provision throughout a child's life. It puts this in the context of integrated assessment and intervention found across children's services.
• Section 4 sets out the Act's provisions for supporting families and young people in their dealings with authorities, including mediation and dispute resolution.
• Section 5 describes the Act's provisions for dealing with placing requests in respect of children and young people who have additional support needs, and advises on other issues not already covered.
• The Annexes include a range of illustrative scenarios and examples of good practice.
• The Glossary contains definitions of terms used in the Act and elsewhere.
• The Resources section provides a list of other sources of information, including the Act and associated Regulations.

Definitions

• The Act gives equal rights to parents and young persons. A young person is a person over school age (generally over 16 years) who is not yet 18 years of age. Throughout the Code the term young people is used instead of young persons, for ease of understanding.

References in the Code

• The Code refers to the Act and its associated regulations. References to the Act are in the margin of each page, for example s1 (1) (a) refers to Section 1, subsection 1a. References to the titles of other legislation or policies are also in the margin of each page.

Further information

Further information on the Code of Practice is available from:

Additional Support Needs Division
Scottish Executive Education Department
Victoria Quay
Edinburgh
EH6 6QQ
Tel: 0131 244 4914
Fax: 0131 244 7943
Email: ASLAct@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

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