Special Educational Needs reform in Wales

31 October 2018

The special educational needs (SEN) reforms in Wales are now a little under a year away from their introduction. The Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Educational Tribunal Act was passed in January of this year and will begin to be rolled out from the start of the new school year in September 2020.

Special Educational Needs reform in Wales

31 October 2018

The special educational needs (SEN) reforms in Wales are now a little under a year away from their introduction. The Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Educational Tribunal Act was passed in January of this year and will begin to be rolled out from the start of the new school year in September 2020.

Boy with a female carer, smiling.

The special educational needs (SEN) reforms in Wales are now a little under a year away from their introduction. The Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Educational Tribunal Act was passed in January of this year and will begin to be rolled out from the start of the new school year in September 2020.

What are the reforms?

There will be some significant changes. For instance, as the name of the act suggests, the term ‘special educational needs (SEN)’ will be replaced by ‘additional learning needs (ALN)’. This in turn means the SENCOs will be known as ALeNCOs. School/Early Years Action, School/Early Years Action Plus and statements will disappear and every child with recognised ALN will eventually be issued with a new statutory document called an Individual Development Plan (IDP). This is not to be confused with individual education plans (IEP) which will also be phased out. Unlike statements, which stop when a young person leaves school, IDPs will continue up to 25 years of age if the young person goes onto further education.

 

The Welsh Government has produced an overview of the new system and has compiled answers to some frequently asked questions: together they will give you a good idea of how the Welsh Government expect things to work.

What happens next?

As the transition to the new system will involve major changes for local authorities, schools and further education colleges it will be introduced gradually and the Welsh Government has produced guidance explaining the timescales involved.

The Welsh Government is also drafting a new code of practice which will be issued for consultation before the end of the year. This is likely to be a rather long document and apparently there won’t be an easy-read version. However, it is very important as it sets out in detail how the ALN system will work in practice and the Welsh Government would like feedback from parents and carers as well as professionals so we will let you know when it is issued.

In the meantime, SNAP Cymru are running some ALN reform awareness sessions for parents and carers in Mid and South-West Wales in November and December.

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