ALN Reform
Draft Additional Learning Needs Code for Wales – Regional Consultation Events Video
A message from Wales’ Minister for Education, Kirsty Williams, regarding Additional Learning Needs (ALN) reform in Wales. This message was played during an event which the schools Additional Need Coordinators (ANCOs) attended along with Mrs Hopkins our Headteacher.
The Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018
The Additional Learning Needs and Educational Tribunal (Wales) Bill was passed by the National Assembly for Wales on 12th December 2017 and became an act on 24 January 2018 after receiving Royal Assent.
This will create the legislative framework to improve the planning and delivery of additional learning provision, through a person-centered approach to identifying needs early, putting in place effective support and monitoring, and adapting interventions to ensure they deliver the desired outcomes.
The act will be supported by:
- secondary legislation where further detail is required
- an ALN code – statutory guidance and mandatory requirements to help people and organisations work within the law.
in 2018, the ALN Code and regulations which support the act will be revised, consulted on, laid before the National Assembly for Wales and published.
For the time being, local authorities and all those who work with children and young people with SEN, must ensure that they continue to comply with the duties placed upon them by the Education Act 1996. They must also continue to have regard to the SEN Code of Practice for Wales (2004)
The 11 aims of the Act
1. The introduction of the term ‘additional learning needs (ALN)’ The Act replaces the terms ‘special educational needs (SEN)’ and ‘learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD)’ with the new term ‘additional learning needs (ALN)’.
2. A 0 to 25 age range There will be a single legislative system relating to the support given to children and young people aged between 0 to 25 years who have ALN. This is instead of the two separate systems currently operating to support children and young people of compulsory school age who have SEN, and young people in further education who have LDD.
3. A unified plan The Act creates a single statutory plan (the individual development plan (IDP)) to replace the existing variety of statutory and non-statutory SEN or LDD plans for learners in schools and further education.
4. Increased participation of children and young people The Act requires that learners’ views should always be considered as part of the planning process, along with those of their parents/carers. It is imperative that children and young people see the planning process as something which is done with them rather than to them.
5. High aspirations and improved outcomes The emphasis of IDPs will be on making provision that delivers tangible outcomes that contribute in a meaningful way to the child or young person’s achievement of their full potential.
6. A simpler and less adversarial system The process of producing and revising an IDP should be much simpler than is currently the case with statements of SEN.
7. Increased collaboration The new system encourages improved collaboration and information sharing between agencies, which are essential to ensuring that needs are identified early and the right support is put in place to enable children and young people to achieve positive outcomes.
8. Avoiding disagreements and earlier disagreement resolution The new system focuses on ensuring that where disagreements occur about an IDP or the provision it contains, the matter is considered and resolved at the most local level possible.
9. Clear and consistent rights of appeal Where disagreements about the contents of an IDP cannot be resolved at the local level, the Act ensures that children and young people entitled to an IDP (and their parents/carers in the case of those that are under 16 years) have a right of appeal to a tribunal.
10. The ALN Code The ALN Code will provide a set of clear, legally enforceable parameters within which local authorities and those other organisations responsible for the delivery of services for children and young people with ALN, must act.
11. A bilingual system The Act requires that services must consider whether a child or young person needs additional learning provision in Welsh. If they do, this must be documented in the IDP and ‘all reasonable steps’ must be taken to secure the provision in Welsh.
Person Centred ReviewsWhat is a person-centred review?Person-centred reviews are a way of deciding what support is needed for a child or young person with special educational needs or to decide any changes that need to be made to their support. It is important that children and young people have the right people involved in their review meeting to help them to plan for their future. This means that the review can make sure that they have the things that are important to them, as well as the right support to help achieve their aspirations.Who will be there?The child or young person can choose who they would like to be there, but there will also be some people who have to be there. Sometimes there may be lots of people involved in the review, such as health, social care and education professionals as well as family and friends. For others, there might just be you, your child, and someone from the school or college.Where and when will it be?It will probably be at the school or college. The time and date should suit you and your child as well as any other people who are coming. There will be at least one review a year – the school or college will let you know when these are due.What do you need to think about before the meeting?Our ALNCOs, Mrs Owen and Mrs Thomas, will be sending out information leaflets and booklets to give you a place to record your thoughts and views prior to the meeting. If you are going to be at the review, then this booklet will help you to think about the things you want to say and you can use it to write down things you want to remember to say on the day. If you are not going to be at the review then it may still be important to your child that your views are heard at the meeting. In this case, it is really important that you take time to think about the questions, record your thoughts in the spaces provided and send this booklet to your school or college by the date they have asked for. This will help to make sure that your views are listened to at the meeting.What will happen at the meeting?You will find a person-centred review has a relaxed atmosphere, very different to other traditional meetings you may have been to. Everything is set out to be as informal and comfortable as possible. If it is a small meeting, it may be just a relaxed talk. Every review will change to meet the needs of your child, who is at the centre of the meeting.One person, called a facilitator, will have the job of making sure that everyone can have their say and that the meeting comes up with targets and actions for change. The facilitator is most likely to be someone from the school and you should know who it is before the meeting. The meeting begins with everyone introducing themselves and possibly sharing something that they like or admire about your child. The facilitator will explain what will happen in the review meeting, and then everyone will have the chance to share their views and knowledge about your child. When everyone has finished giving their comments, you will all think about and talk about what needs to change and what outcomes and targets you want to see. You will then all agree what actions need to take place to support your child to help them meet their aspirations.At the end of a reviewBy the end of the review the facilitator will make sure that there is an agreed Action Plan. The Action Plan is to make sure that everyone can see what is going to be done to support your child to learn and to achieve their dreams.For more information please see links below.