Chamber and committees

The Manual of Good Practice in Special Educational Needs identifies the key features of effective practice in developing Individualised Educational Programmes (IEPs) for children and young people with special educational needs, including autism. The manual can be viewed at

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/health/gpsenm-00.asp.

In addition, the Scottish Executive has funded extensive training on the development and use of IEPs through the Success For All project. The handbook, developed as part of the project, contains guidance on the key principles for planning, designing and implementing IEPs and for setting appropriate targets. The handboook and more information and guidance on IEPs can be found on the Learning and Teaching Scotland website at http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/inclusiveeducation/.

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995, The Education (Scotland) Act 1980 and the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000 are all part of the legislative framework that a local authority has to operate within.

The 1995 act places duties upon the local authority with respect to children who are in need. The 1980 act places duties upon the local authority as education authority with respect to children in their area who have pronounced, specific or complex special educational needs and who require continuing review and to open and maintain a record of needs.

The way the different acts interplay and apply to individual children will depend upon the facts and circumstances of that child. However, statutory guidance on the 1995 act expects that whenever a range of services are provided by the local authority that there is co-ordination and communication between the service providers.

The handbook accompanying the Scottish Executive’s Success For All project contains an example of the possible content of an IEP and can be found at http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/inclusiveeducation/. The targets set in the IEP were compiled using the elaborated curriculum frameworks and autism specific approaches. In addition, the Learning and Teaching Scotland website contains several case studies.

I refer the member to question S2W-10846 answered on 4 October 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

The Quality Assurance in Initial Teacher Education document establishes a comprehensive and unitary set of benchmark statements which are the requirements of each programme of initial teacher education in Scotland. This is the standard for initial teacher education in Scotland.

The standard for ITE also sets a series of key principles and covers the curriculum, education systems and professional responsibilities, principles and perspectives, teaching and learning, classroom organisation and management, individual pupil assessment and professional values and personal commitment.

One of the benchmarks on teaching and learning sets the expectation that student teachers can demonstrate the ability to identify and respond appropriately to pupils with difficulties in, or barriers to, learning, including autism and can recognise when to seek further advice in relation to their special educational needs.

As part of the normal process of inspection, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) consider the adequacy of provision for special educational needs, including that for autism. The Scottish Executive has commissioned HMIE to conduct a specific inspection of educational provision for autism across Scotland. This will take place over 2005-06 with some preliminary work starting later this year. It is a matter for the professional judgement of HMIE to determine how they conduct inspections. Further information on current proceduresis available at www.hmie.gov.uk.

The SPCB does not maintaininsurance for this matter.

I refer the member to question S2W-10843 answered on 4 October 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

If a parent believes that an education authority is failing to discharge any of its duties under education legislation then they can make a complaint to Scottish ministers in terms of section 70 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980. If Scottish ministers are satisfied that the education authority has failed to discharge any statutory duty relating to education then they may make an order declaring them to be in default in respect of that duty and requiring them, before a date stated in the order, to discharge that duty.

If there is an allegation of negligent performance of any duties, whether common law or statutory, then recourse would be through the courts.

The information requested is not collected centrally.

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA) repealed parts of the Disabled Persons (employment) Act (NI) 1945. This means that there is no longer a register of disabled people.

The Scottish Executive asks applicants to self declare whether they have a disability and this information is recorded. The table below sets out the number of applicants applying for vacancies in the Scottish Executive since 1999 who have self declared a disability, broken down by grade and also expressed as a percentage of the total number of applicants.

Year/Grade	Applications
Total Applications received	Applicants Self Declaring a Disability
1999
Band A	3,569	139
		3.90%
Band B	5,796	95
		1.60%
Band C	1,081	12
		1.10%
SCS	179	0
		0.00%
2000
Band A	3,084	156
		5.10%
Band B	3,109	53
		1.70%
Band C	1,397	23
		1.60%
SCS	519	0
		0.00%
2001
Band A	3,650	176
		4.80%
Band B	4,810	87
		1.80%
Band C	786	9
		1.10%
SCS	148	*
		*
2002
Band A	496	21
		4.20%
Band B	530	14
		2.60%
Band C	1,600	20
		1.30%
SCS	118	0
		0.00%
2003
Band A	848	58
		6.80%
Band B	2,732	74
		2.70%
Band C	1,224	33
		1.20%
SCS	175	0
		0.00%
2004
Band A	81	6
		7.41%
Band B	737	30
		4.07%
Band C	75	0
		0.00%
SCS	860	5
		0.58%

Notes: *Figures marked with an asterisk cannot be published separately to preserve confidentiality.