Additional support for learning: action plan (updated October 2021)

3.1 Leadership and Strategic Planning

Recommendation

There must be clear values-driven leadership, shared communication, support and challenge at all levels of the system to ensure that the experiences and achievements of children and young people with additional support needs are visible and continue to be improved.

Response

Accept.

Actions to be taken forward - Oct 2020

Alongside the continued investment in values based leadership, the Scottish Government will work with Local Government and relevant partners, including GTCS, Education Scotland and partners in Health and Social Care to build on existing work and seek both nationally and locally, opportunities to develop and promote additional professional learning and leadership.

ADES will consult with its members on the locus of additional support needs within its leadership programme.

Through continued work towards implementation of the Doran Review recommendations, the Scottish Government will work with Local Government and other key partners, including the Grant Aided Special Schools and National Centres, to consider opportunities to share the expertise of all professionals who support children and young people with complex additional support needs in specialist settings throughout the wider education system.

These actions will be aligned to the actions which will be taken forward to support teacher learning and development.

Delivery Timescale

As set out at 9.1, as part of its on-going commitment to monitoring progress of the ASL Action Plan, ASLIG will review the reporting cycles and provide an update in Spring 2022.

Status Oct 2021

On-going / on track

Progress made:

The Scottish Government and Local Government have worked with partners to identify opportunities develop and promote additional professional learning and leadership. This will continue through the work to refresh the Supporting Learners' Code of Practice.

The Doran Review's national strategic commissioning group is developing a pilot to enhance existing post graduate teacher leadership programmes with complex additional support needs content and special school hosted placements. It is anticipated that the pilot will run in the 2022-23 academic year.

ADES has the ASL review as a standing item on their agenda to support and increase visibility of implementation of additional support for learning, informing the ADES 2025 Vision.

3.1.1

Recommendation

In order to drive a holistic approach and support the visibility of children and young people with additional support needs Council Planning must incorporate the implications of additional support for learning for all Council and Partner services

Response

Accept

Actions to be taken forward - Oct 2020

ADES, SOLACE and COSLA will liaise on the approach to be taken at local authority level to ensure that council planning incorporates and makes visible the implications of additional support for learning. This will build on other related work already underway, for example, related to Equalities.

Delivery Timescale

As set out at 9.1, as part of its on-going commitment to monitoring progress of the ASL Action Plan, ASLIG will review the reporting cycles and provide an update in Spring 2022.

Status Oct 2021

On-going / on track

Progress made:

The ADES Executive and the ASN Network have collaborated with other national organisations to promote an integrated and holistic approach to support the visibility of children and young people with additional support needs in council planning. These include COSLA, The Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE), the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT), the Scottish Government's Getting it Right for Every Child team, Children and Families Leadership Group and Education Scotland

The Scottish Government's Continuity in Learning Guidance which was developed with Local Government and other partners, set additional support for learning within the context of Getting it right for every child in relation to identification and planning for needs arising from Covid-19 and supports local authorities to further embed a holistic approach to planning.