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Since 1998 there have been two major policy statements and reviews of special educational needs issues.
In May 1998 the Scottish Office Discussion Paper on Special Educational Needs stimulated debate throughout Scotland on how to improve provision for children with special educational needs. A series of measures was announced in November 1998 by the then Minister for Education, Helen Liddell. Particular measures included substantial increases in funding for SEN staff development and training and for speech and language therapy provision for children with Records of Needs.
In September 1999 Scottish Ministers welcomed the recommendations in the report of the Riddell Advisory Committee into Educational Provision for children with severe low incidence disabilities. The Riddell Report made 22 recommendations, including a call for better inter-agency and inter-authority working. The Scottish Executive response to the Riddell Report was set out in the document Improving Our Schools: Special Educational Needs also published in September 1999. This response welcomed the report's recommendations and invited comments on both the Riddell Report and specific measures announced by Ministers. A summary of responses will be published soon.
A number of action points arose from these consultation exercises. These points, taken together with measures arising from developments elsewhere in the SEN area, amount to a substantial SEN Programme of Action which has been and is being taken forward by the Scottish Executive. Brief progress reports on aspects of the Programme are set out below.
In September 1999 Scottish Ministers announced a new Inclusion Programme, worth £12 million over two years, under the Excellence Fund for Improving Scottish Schools to support local authorities to include children with special educational needs in mainstream provision. This is in line with Ministers' desire to see schools representing as far as possible the local community within which they are situated.
Ministers recognise that many local authorities are already doing much in this area. Examples of initiatives which are being supported include:
Aberdeen City
is developing its policy of education of children within their local communities.
It has expanded the number of support bases within City schools from eight in
1996 to twenty nine and will add a further six bases to complete its pattern
of provision. It will use Inclusion Programme funding to expand and refurbish
existing bases and to create new ones, improve acoustic treatment of rooms within
bases, improve physical access to bases and employ additional teaching and auxiliary
staff.
Falkirk
is improving access to schools for pupils with a physical disability; improving
access to Information Technology for pupils with impairments; supporting pupils
with health difficulties to maintain contact with their peer group and school;
and supporting staff to assist children with special needs being included within
classroom for first time.
South Ayrshire
is utilising funding for adaptations and equipment for primary school facility
for pupils with autistic spectrum disorders; relocation and refurbishment of
support for learning base in Girvan Academy; installing lift in Dalmalling Primary
School; increasing number of SEN auxiliaries to support pupils with severe low
incidence disabilities.
Western Isles
is supporting educational provision for pupils with autistic spectrum disorder
within the islands rather than in mainland residential schools.
A summary of all local authority plans for funding under the Inclusion Programme will appear in the National SEN Advisory Forum web-site.
Enquire, a new national SEN information helpline, was officially launched on 1 November 1999 by Sam Galbraith, Minister for Children and Education. Children in Scotland has been awarded £621,000 over 3 years by the Scottish Executive to provide independent information and advice service for parents, carers and families of children with special educational needs and for children and young people themselves. The service is providing general advice across the whole spectrum of SEN and aims to promote a collaborative approach to the education of children and young people with SEN.
In its first 6 months the service has :
Further measures will include:
Enquire can be contacted on 0131 222 2400.
Scottish Ministers wish to encourage the early and accurate identification and assessment of the special educational needs of children and young people, and the making of appropriate provision for them. For this to be achieved, staff need to continue developing their skills. Consequently, the Scottish Executive provides specific grant to education authorities who wish to use in-service training as a means of increasing the level of expertise available within the authority.
In 1999-2000 funding available under this scheme was £5.3 million. This supports development and training for all school-based staff working with children with special educational needs, (over 13,000 participants on in-service training courses and events); post-graduate training for educational psychologists (34 over two years); and a National In-Service Training Co-ordination Project which seeks to match training needs of local authorities with courses offered by the training providers and to identify any gaps between needs and services
An analysis of local authority training strategies for 1999-2000 revealed the following
For 2000-01 local authorities have been asked to comment on what they are doing in the following areas: supporting the inclusion of pupils with SEN in mainstream classes; training on Individualised Educational Programmes; multi-disciplinary training e.g. joint training for teachers and therapists; training in areas of autism, dyslexia and dyspraxia; and training in child protection for staff.
In addition, the National In-Service Training Co-ordination Project will undertake an evaluation of the impact of the in-service SEN training programme.
Resources available to local authorities for the procurement of speech and language therapy services for pupils with Records of Needs more than doubled to £6.5 million per year from April 1999. While the additional resources were welcomed many people have expressed the view that there needs to be more transparency about the funding arrangements for speech and language therapy. Suggestions have been made that the funding should be ring-fenced to ensure that it is spent on speech and language therapy provision. Some education authorities have suggested that the current funding arrangements for speech and language therapy should be extended to occupational and physiotherapy services. There is a fear amongst some health bodies, however, that these arrangements, which are aimed at children with Records of Needs, mean that non-recorded pupils who need speech and language therapy may be disadvantaged when decisions on provision are made.
In the light of the above the Scottish Executive Education and Health Departments are examining the current funding arrangements in relation to speech and language therapy and considering how these and current arrangements for occupational and physiotherapy services might be improved.
The SEN Innovation Grants Programme, established in 1999, supports and encourages the voluntary and non-statutory sectors to develop best practice and innovative ideas in special educational needs provision. In September 1999, Sam Galbraith, Minister for Children and Education announced grants totalling £3.8 million to 21 national and local voluntary organisations for 33 projects across Scotland.
Examples of grants awarded include
A wide range of applications have been received for a second round of bids.
Scottish Ministers will announce further awards under the SEN Innovation Grants Programme.
A Good Practice Manual for staff and professionals involved with children and young people with SEN was issued to all schools in January 1999. HM Inspector of Schools have addressed a number of seminars for school staff to disseminate the advice contained in the manual. These seminars are being conducted under a national project Success for All which is helping to take forward work under the Scottish Executive's "Raising Standards-Setting Targets" initiative which includes SEN guidance for education authorities, schools and teachers. An SEN support pack was published in November 1999. It aims to provide a focus for staff development, to help professionals develop their processes in setting targets for SEN pupils at all levels and to identify areas for improvement.
The initiative will provide more information about attainment at school and local authority level, and may also provide opportunities for individual establishments to identify others which are similar in important respects to their own, and to compare performance and practice. To help with this process HMI has made available information about achievement in special schools. The result of all these activities will be a more accurate and detailed national picture on which to base future strategies.
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