Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to accept recognition and identification assessments made online for hidden disabilities such as dyslexia, autism and other neurodiverse conditions that would normally have been made face-to-face.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
As both my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.
The COVID-19 guidance on vulnerable and young children was published on 22 March, and explains the practicalities for local authorities and other providers in light of school and college closures. Which is available at:
Further guidance on risk assessments was published on 19 April: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-send-risk-assessment-guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-send-risk-assessment-guidance.
We are asking local authorities to work with educational providers, families and the child or young person to carry out a risk assessment to judge whether a vulnerable child or young person, including those with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan, is able to attend a school or other educational setting or can be supported more safely at home. They will need to judge how best to meet the needs of these children and young people, including whether some of the support they require can be provided at home. Local authorities will also need to consider how to ensure they can continue to assess children’s needs, including conducting EHC needs assessments through virtual means, whether those children are school or home based at this time.
We are working closely with a range of charities and other organisations to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, such as the Council for Disabled Children, Contact and the National Network of Parent Carer Forums, and have taken on board their views when framing guidance.
These are rapidly developing circumstances; we continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that higher education institutions are fulfilling their obligation to support students who would previously have been supported by Bands 1 and 2 of the Disabled Students' Allowance.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Higher Education Providers (HEPs) are responsible for providing reasonable adjustments for disabled students under the Equality Act 2010, and since September 2016 expected to deliver, as reasonable adjustments, less specialist non-medical help (NMH) previously funded through Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) NMH Bands 1 and 2.
The government expects all HEPs to meet their Equality Act responsibilities and to be making reasonable adjustments for all disabled students, not just those in receipt of DSAs. HEPs are entirely responsible for ensuring the support they offer disabled students meets any legal requirements to which they are subject.
Students who enter into dispute with their HEP over the support provided by their HEP as a recommended reasonable adjustment have access to the Exceptional Case Process, which provides interim funding to support DSAs-eligible students whilst the dispute is being resolved.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the support available for disabled students is included in the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) recognises and rewards high quality teaching in higher education. Its purpose is to give all students clear information about where teaching quality is best, and to hold higher education providers to account for the quality of their teaching, learning environment and student outcomes. The TEF recognises the needs of all students, including students with disabilities, for high quality teaching and outcomes.
The TEF metrics used in the assessment process are benchmarked to take account of the entry qualifications and characteristics of students, and the subjects studied at each university or college. These benchmarks include disability. The TEF assessment is therefore based on what each college or university achieves for its particular students. The contextual information provided to assessors to help them interpret the metrics for a provider includes information about disabled students at that institution.
Higher education providers, in the submissions that support their assessments, can also highlight aspects of their provision, which might include support for their students with specific needs. Assessors will consider the whole range of factors before arriving at a final TEF rating.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of technology for recording and sharing higher education lectures and other teaching activities.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
In 2017 the Institute for Employment Studies (IES) published a research report, commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, which reviewed the levels of support for disabled students across the higher education (HE) sector in 2016/17 and the progress made by HE providers (HEPs) towards inclusive, social models of support.
The report is available at: https://www.employment-studies.co.uk/resource/models-support-students-disabilities and is also attached.
The research found that the majority of institutions used audio or video recording of at least some of their lectures. Most of those who did not currently use lecture capture planned to introduce it in the future.
The Office for Students has commissioned follow-up research from IES, a report of which will be published in summer 2019.
Furthermore, in January 2019, the department published an evaluation research report of the support provided to disabled students in higher education through Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) and the support provided by HEPs. This report showed that disabled students were aware and took advantage of support from their HEPs, including online course materials, the provision of lecture notes in advance and lecture capture, and specialist software and assistive technology. The DSAs evaluation research report is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-of-disabled-students-allowances-dsas and is also attached.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that (1) currently, and (2) in the future, those setting the criteria for eligibility for Disabled Students Allowance consult the school sector about making such criteria compatible and in accordance with recommended practice for special education needs and disability within the maintained school system.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The arrangements introduced in 2014 through the Children and Families Act for supporting children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in schools and further education do not apply to students on a higher education course. This is because the higher education environment is very different to that in schools and in further education, with an emphasis on independent learning. The role of local authorities does not extend to securing higher education for young people with SEND. Moving into higher education is deemed a successful outcome for those with special educational needs.
Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) are available only to eligible students studying a designated higher education course. There are no plans to align the eligibility criteria with those used for providing support in the schools sector. However, where a young person has an education, health and care plan the local authority is required to share that information with the DSAs study needs assessor, if that is requested by the young person.
This ensures that strategies that have already been used successfully in earlier stages of education may be considered within the context of higher education.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken since the inception of Disabled Students Allowance to ensure that those setting the criteria for the Disabled Students Allowance are fully informed about normal practice in identifying and supporting those with special educational needs within the school population.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The arrangements introduced in 2014 through the Children and Families Act for supporting children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in schools and further education do not apply to students on a higher education course. This is because the higher education environment is very different to that in schools and in further education, with an emphasis on independent learning. The role of local authorities does not extend to securing higher education for young people with SEND. Moving into higher education is deemed a successful outcome for those with special educational needs.
Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) are available only to eligible students studying a designated higher education course. There are no plans to align the eligibility criteria with those used for providing support in the schools sector. However, where a young person has an education, health and care plan the local authority is required to share that information with the DSAs study needs assessor, if that is requested by the young person.
This ensures that strategies that have already been used successfully in earlier stages of education may be considered within the context of higher education.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether those working in special educational needs in schools are currently required to hold the Assessment Practising Certificate or other relevant qualifications for the purposes of diagnosing dyslexia and specific learning difficulties.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
Neither qualified teachers, nor special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCO), are required to hold the Assessment Practising Certificate.
Every school is required to identify and address the special educational needs (SEN) of the pupils that they support, including those with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties, and are subject to the requirements of the statutory guidance, the ‘Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Code of Practice: 0-25 Years’: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.
In order for teachers to be awarded qualified teacher status, trainees must satisfy the teachers’ standards which include a requirement that they have a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils, including those with SEN and are able to use and evaluate distinctive teaching approaches to engage and support them: www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-standards. ‘A framework of core content for initial teacher training (ITT)’, published in July 2016 states that providers should ensure SEND training is integrated across the ITT programme: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/initial-teacher-training-government-response-to-carter-review.
All maintained mainstream schools and nursery schools must designate a qualified teacher as the SENCO. Any SENCO appointed to the role after 1 September 2009, and who has not previously been the SENCO at that or any other relevant school for a total period of more than 12 months, is required to achieve a national award in special educational needs co-ordination (NASENCO). The NASENCO is a masters-level award, which covers all aspects of leading on SEND within schools and supporting children and young people with SEND.
The government has provided support to organisations, including the British Dyslexia Association, to produce a range of guidance to help teachers provide support to children and young people with dyslexia. In April 2018 the Whole School SEND consortium, led by the National Association for SEN, nasen, were awarded £3.4 million for 2018-2020 to deliver a programme of work to equip the school workforce to deliver high quality teaching across all types of SEND, including specific learning difficulties. The programme of work aims to help schools identify and meet SEND training needs.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether those involved in teaching and diagnosing pupils with dyslexia and specific learning difficulties in the school system have been consulted about the changes to people who can conduct assessments for eligibility for the Disabled Students’ Allowance.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is yet to conclude discussions currently being held with relevant experts, including the British Dyslexia Association, about the qualifications that should be held by those undertaking specific learning difficulty diagnostic assessments that can be used to determine eligibility for Disabled Students’ Allowances. The experts with whom the department is discussing this issue have knowledge and understanding of diagnostic assessment undertaken for school pupils. The department expects to conclude these discussions by the middle of March 2019.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether all potential students with a diagnosis of dyslexia or specific learning difficulties whose assessment was carried out by somebody without the Assessment Practising Certificate before the end of February 2019 will have to undertake and pay for a second assessment to make them eligible for the Disabled Students’ Allowance in the future.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is yet to conclude discussions currently being held with relevant experts, including the British Dyslexia Association, about the qualifications that should be held by those undertaking specific learning difficulty diagnostic assessments that can be used to determine eligibility for Disabled Students’ Allowances. The experts with whom the department is discussing this issue have knowledge and understanding of diagnostic assessment undertaken for school pupils. The department expects to conclude these discussions by the middle of March 2019.
Asked by: Lord Addington (Liberal Democrat - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the undertaking in the letter from Viscount Younger of Leckie to Lord Addington on 3 December that those diagnosed with dyslexia or specific learning difficulties before the age of 16 will no longer have to undertake a second diagnosis to qualify for the Disabled Students’ Allowance, whether those who have been qualified to carry out this assessment will continue to be so after February 2019.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is yet to conclude discussions currently being held with relevant experts, including the British Dyslexia Association, about the qualifications that should be held by those undertaking specific learning difficulty diagnostic assessments that can be used to determine eligibility for Disabled Students’ Allowances. The experts with whom the department is discussing this issue have knowledge and understanding of diagnostic assessment undertaken for school pupils. The department expects to conclude these discussions by the middle of March 2019.