Review of additional support for learning implementation: report

Annex B: Summary of engagement

ASL Review - Summary of engagement

During phase 2, considerable efforts were made to engage with children and young people; parents and carers with direct and lived experience and; practitioners, in and beyond education, who are directly involved in the delivery of services. The Chair sought to ensure breadth and balance by engaging across Scotland and with representatives from across sectors. The Chair was supported during phase 2 by Joanna McCreadie.^[104]

Great care was taken by the Chair to consider each contribution fully and follow up as appropriate. All contributors were given an assurance of confidentiality and anonymity to enable them to share information confidently and honestly.

Written submissions

Over 200 emails were received by the Chair's dedicated mailbox. The vast majority of these were from parents and carers in which they shared their unique experience of how additional support for learning was working in practice for their family.

Teachers, pupil support assistants, other school staff and other professionals who provide support to children and young people, also shared through the mailbox their experiences and perspectives.

With the support of organisations such as Children in Scotland and My Rights, My Say, children and young people were supported to share their own experiences of what works well for them at school and the things they would like to be improved.

A survey was issued to all 32 local authorities and questions were circulated to Social Work Scotland. All the responses received were considered in detail by the Chair.

A session was held at the Additional Support for Learning Summit in October 2019.^[105] Attendees were asked to consider a range of questions set by the Chair on the implementation of additional support for learning. The Chair carefully considered all the responses.

The Chair also considered correspondence from a wide range of organisations and groups. A number of these organisations provided the Chair with background, information and examples of their work and experiences. Some organisations provided a written response to the review on behalf of their organisation or group. These included:

• CELCIS
• Association of Heads and Deputes Scotland (AHDS)
• See Me
• Includem
• Dundee Young Ambassadors
• My Rights My Say
• Downs Syndrome Scotland
• Enquire
• Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)
• National Deaf Children's Society (NDCS)
• Royal Caledonian Education Trust
• Families Outside
• Salvesen Mindroom Centre
• Children in Scotland
• National Autism Implementation Team (NAIT)
• Edinburgh Secondary Headteachers
• A joint response from the authors of Not Included, Not Engaged, Not Involved
• Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists
• Scottish Commission of Learning Disability
• Royal Blind School
• Children's Health Scotland
• English as an Additional Language service - Edinburgh
• NASUWT
• National Parent Forum of Scotland's January 2020 feedback report from their 6 Additional Support for Learning focus groups

Direct engagement

The Chair undertook to meet with as many groups and organisations as possible during phase 2, through phone or video calls, meetings, focus groups and attendance at events. Due to timing constraints, it was not possible for the Chair to meet with every person or group who is involved in, or had an experience or perspective to share. However, where this was the case, the Chair encouraged those individuals or groups to share their experience and perspective through written correspondence to the mailbox.

The Chair undertook the following:

• A meeting with the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills
• A meeting with Councillor McCabe, COSLA Spokesperson for Children and Young People
• A meeting of the Additional support for Learning Implementation Group (ASLIG)^[106]
• A meeting with the Chief Executive/ Registrar of the General Teaching Council Scotland (GTCS)
• A meeting with the Chair of Doran National Commissioning Group
• A meeting with the Chair of ADES
• A meeting with the President of the Health and Education Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland
• Meetings with representatives from Education Scotland
• Meetings with representatives from the Scottish Government's Learning Directorate
• A meeting with a representative from local authority finance directors
• A meeting with the Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists (ASPEP)
• A meeting with the ADES ASN Network
• A meeting with a representative from Skills Development Scotland
• Attendance at the COSLA CYP Board meeting
• A meeting with the Association of Support for Learning Officers (ASLO)
• A meeting with representatives from CELCIS
• Attendance at Social Work Scotland Standing Committee
• A meeting with a representative from CAMHS
• Attendance at the ADES Early Learning and Childcare network meeting
• A meeting with a representative of the Scottish Council of Deans
• Attendance at the Keys to Life Leadership group
• A meeting with representatives from the Scottish Network of Highly Able Pupils (SNAP)
• A meeting with representatives from the Scottish Traveller Education Programme (STEP)
• Attendance at Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland (CCPS) Committee
• Attendance at a focus group with varied representatives^[107]
• A meeting with representatives from the Independent Care Review
• Attendance at a focus group with representatives from the Grant Aided Special Schools, National Centres, Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) and National Deaf Children's Society (NDCS)
• A meeting with representatives of the Scottish Community Development Centre and Community Health Exchange
• A meeting with Audit Scotland
• A meeting with representatives of organisations who support Armed Forces Children in Scotland
• A meeting with representatives from the Carnegie Trust
• A meeting with representatives from Carers Trust Scotland
• Attendance at the Allied Health Professionals CYP Board meeting
• A meeting with the Assistant Secretary of the EiS
• Attendance at the EiS ASN network meeting
• Attendance at a Making a difference: a day of learning for pupil support assistants^[108]
• Attendance at a focus group with Unison members
• Attendance at a focus group with Association of Heads and Deputes Scotland members
• A meeting with representatives from NASUWT
• A meeting with NAIT
• Attendance at meeting of BOCSH – a network of secondary Headteachers
• A meeting with representatives from Achievement Bute
• Phone calls with individual parents
• A meeting with staff at Enquire
• A visit and engagement with the Family Led Information Point, East Lothian
• A meeting with staff from ASL Resolve
• A meeting with staff from Let's Talk ASN
• A meeting with staff from Common Ground mediation
• Attendance at a focus group for parents - Aberdeen
• Attendance at a focus group for parents - Aberdeenshire
• A visit and engagement with Columba 1400 – Clackmannanshire
• A meeting with a representative from Connect
• Attendance at focus group for parents in Edinburgh and Glasgow organised by the National Parent Forum of Scotland^[109]
• Attendance at a focus group with PDA Awareness & Support Group – North Lanarkshire
• Attendance at a focus group for parents – Stirling
• Attendance at a focus group for parents - REACH Lanarkshire Autism
• Attendance at a focus group for parents - Differabled Scotland
• A meeting with Children and Young People Commissioner Scotland
• A focus group for children and young people^[110]
• A meeting with members of the Scottish Youth Parliament
• A meeting with representatives from the Children's Parliament
• A meeting with the Young Ambassadors for Inclusion
• Attendance at the Children in Scotland Conference, including a session on the ASL Review and with the Young Ambassadors for Inclusion
• A meeting with the Lead for North Regional Improvement Collaborative
• A visit and discussion with staff at a school in Moray Council
• A visit and discussion with staff at a school in Edinburgh City Council
• A meeting with former teachers
• A series of discussions with teachers

Engagement was^[111] undertaken with the following local authorities:^[112]

• Aberdeenshire Council
• Clackmannanshire Council
• Dundee City Council
• East Renfrewshire Council
• Edinburgh City Council
• Fife Council
• Glasgow City Council
• Moray Council
• North Ayrshire Council
• Renfrewshire Council
• South Ayrshire Council
• South Lanarkshire Council
• Stirling Council