Additional Learning Needs: The system is changing.

What is happening?

At Greenfield School we pride ourselves on opening doors to enable our pupils to make great progress. Our environment is truly inclusive and provides rich learning experiences to ensure all our learners enjoy school, make progress and grow in confidence. It is for this reason that we are excited about the changes that the new special educational needs system is bringing. The Welsh Government have produced new legislation that will change the way that children and young people with Special Educational Needs are supported. The new system defines Special Educational Needs (SEN) as Additional Learning Needs (ALN).

The key changes of the new ALN system:

Bringing together all current systems into a new, single system for ALN;
Being leaner/person centred;
Providing leaners with the same rights and entitlements whatever their age of setting;
Improving transition between settings;
Being a fair and transparent system for all.

This means that children, young people and parent(s)/carer(s) will:

Access the support they need earlier;
Be more involved in making decisions about the support they need;
Be able to find information more easily;
Be supported if they disagree with decisions.

Children and young people with ALN will also now get this support for longer. The new system is applicable for children and young people up to the age of 25.

What will it look like at Greenfield?

The new system will introduce Individual Development Plans (IDPs). The pupils at Greenfield School currently have statements of SEN and Individual Education Plans (IEPs). IDPs will replace these documents. The IDP will be created with the child/young person and the parent/carer in collaboration with wider agencies such as health and social care professionals. The IDP will capture all that is important to and for the learner, describe their needs and state how the learner will be supported in terms of the Additional Learning Provision (ALP) that they require to meet their needs.

When will it happen?

This is a phased approach which will take place over a number of years. This means there will be two systems in operation between Sept 2021-2024: the new ALN system and the current SEN system. Over the next two years, Welsh Government have directed learners with statements to move over to the new system following this timetable:

School Year 2022-2023 - Nursery; Reception, Year 6; Year 10 and Year 11
School Year 2023-2024 - Year 2; Year 3; Year 4; Year 5; Year 6; Year 8; Year 9 and Year 10 Year 11 and Post 16 will follow a ‘flow through’ approach, where those currently in Year 10 and below, who are being moved to the ALN system during the implementation period, will ‘flow through’ into Further Education with an IDP already in place.

At some point over these timeframes, we will hold a person-centred planning meeting to develop the IDP together. The IDP will then be reviewed at least annually.

Find out more:- There is lots of information about the changes available. Please use the links below to find out more and get in touch if you have any questions or concerns.