Will the Cabinet Member make a statement on the current status of this Council's implementation of the inclusion at schools strategy?

“Will the Cabinet Member make a statement on the current status of this Council's implementation of the inclusion at schools strategy”?

Response by Cabinet Education and Regeneration

The implementation of the Additional Learning Needs (ALN) Reform is the focus of Inclusion and ALN strategy in Bridgend County Borough (BCBC).

The Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Bill was passed by the National Assembly for Wales on 12 December 2017 and. after receiving Royal Assent. became an Act on 24 January 2018.  The Act makes provision for a new statutory framework for supporting children and young people with ALN from the age of 0-25.  This is to replace existing legislation surrounding special educational needs (SEN) and the assessment of children and young people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities in post-16 education and training.

To support implementation of the new system, including the Act, Welsh Government has funded five Additional Learning Needs Transformation Leads.  Four of the transformation leads operate regionally, on the education consortia footprint, and one of the leads works as a Further Education Transformation Lead at a national level.

Implementation of the new system should commence in September 2020 with completion expected by the end of 2023. The timeline is as follows:

• January 2018 - Additional Learning needs Tribunal (Wales) Act gains Royal assent
• March 2018 - ALN Transformation leads in post
• Autumn 2018 - consultation on the draft ALN Code and regulations
• December 2019 - final ALN Code issued
• January 2020 - implementation training on the new ALN Code rolled out
• September 2020 - implementation training on the new ALN code rolled out
• Summer 2023 - SEN and learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD) systems come to an end

The Regional ALN Implementation Plan (2018-2019) has been agreed by Directors of Education from Central South Consortium (CSC).  The plan is awaiting final sign off from Welsh Government which expected in September 2018. There are eight priorities contained within the plan which are as follows:

• Priority 1- create a multi-agency, multi-disciplinary regional implementation plan that underpins the successful transition to the new way of working.

• Priority 2 - deliver an awareness-raising programme that ensures all professionals, school governors, parents, carers, children and young people and the third sector receive timely information about the reforms and associated timescales.
• Priority 3 - implement a comprehensive workforce development plan that is compliant with the ALNET Act and complementary to the wider national education reforms.

• Priority 4 - develop support and provision for post compulsory school-aged learners through identifying local and potential regional offers.

• Priority 5 - ensure that the new statutory expectations for early years are understood and delivered and that appropriate support is provided to increase capacity in early years’ settings.

• Priority 6 - improve strategic engagement with health to support the establishment of the statutory role of the Designated Educational Clinical Lead Officer and develop shared expectations and supportive working practices.

• Priority 7 - review and improve Welsh-medium provision and specialist support to increase regional capacity.

• Priority 8 - support the rights of the child and young person with ALN through the development of user-friendly practices that clearly explain processes and what support they can expect to receive as well as promoting their rights of appeal.

In addition to the Act, there is also a wider ALN transformation programmeto support ALN reform.  In February 2017, the Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language published a written ministerial statement announcing £20m investment in ALN to support all partners to successfully implement and deliver the new system.  £1.1m of that investment was provided via the ALN Innovation Fund, which is a pre-legislative grant to support collaborative projects between a range of agencies involved in supporting learners with ALN.  The fund’s aim was to support the identification and development of innovative practice which improves systems, arrangements and relationships in readiness for roll-out of the forthcoming legislative changes.

The learning from the projects funded by the grant scheme were shared across Wales on 19 June 2018.  This provided a key opportunity to develop ways of working consistently with the reforms and influence the approach to transformation and implementation. The projects are as follows:

• Project 1 - transition planning between education settings, out of education and into social care and into adult life.  The capacity of local post-16 provision with LDD.

• Project 2 - the capacity of ALN Co-coordinators ALNCOs in providing support to classroom staff, including skills development.

• Project 3 - the capacity of special schools to act as specialist support to mainstream schools and the capacity of local authority-based specialist services to support learners in early years, maintained schools and further education institutions.

• Project 4 - practice and arrangements for resolving disagreements and avoiding disputes.

ALN Reform is an agenda item at the Subject Overview and Scrutiny Committee 1 meeting on 18 October 2018.  The Corporate Director, Education and Family Support will arrange a report to be presented at a future Council meeting on the progression of the implementation of the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act in due course.

Supplementary question by Councillor T Thomas

'With special regards to the Inclusion at Schools Strategy, what specific consultation methods were used to ensure pupils are at the heart of decision making?'

Response by the Corporate Director – Education and Family Support

A pupils voice is at the heart of the Council’s decision making processes, and therefore, this lends itself to a variety of consultation methods, particularly in respect of the Equalities Act 2010.

Further supplementary question by Councillor T Thomas.

By what methods?

Response by the Cabinet Member Education and Regeneration

The Corporate Director – Education and Family Support will respond to Councillor Thomas and all other Members further regarding the above, outside of the meeting.