Special educational provision

3:53.   The answers to these questions may indicate immediate remedies which would mean that a statutory assessment was not necessary.  They might, on the other hand, suggest that a statutory assessment would help fully to identify the child's learning difficulties.  In order to reach a decision, LEAs should examine and evaluate the action taken by the school to help the child: the special educational provision which has already been made.  Therefore, except when the child's condition has changed suddenly, LEAs will normally wish to see clear recorded evidence of the learning difficulties identified and the action taken by the child's teachers at stage 1; the action taken by the SEN coordinator and teachers, and their evaluation at stage 2; and the action formulated, monitored and evaluated in conjunction with external specialists at stage 3. LEAs should also ask to see evidence that the school has made use of information from, and the insights of, parents and that, so far as possible, they have been involved in the process of meeting the child's learning difficulties.  In cases where it is the parents who first express a concern to the school about the child's progress, the LEA should ask to see evidence that the school has investigated that concern thoroughly, in the same way as the school would have done if the child's teacher had expressed a concern.  LEAs should also seek the medical advice which has been available to the school on the special educational needs of the child, and will wish to seek information from the child's parents as to any medical condition affecting the child's learning.

3:54.   These considerations apply to all children referred to LEAs, by their parents or by their schools.  But the precise nature of the evidence which LEAs should seek of the child's learning difficulty, its apparent cause and the special educational provision made by the school, will depend in some part on the nature of the child's learning difficulty or disability, and on his or her age.  The following paragraphs therefore address the evidence which LEAs should seek and the questions they should ask about children with certain forms of learning difficulty or disability.  There is a degree of repetition to enable each section to be read as a whole.  This guidance does not assume that there are hard and fast categories of special educational need.  It recognises, as LEAs will recognise, that each child is unique and that the questions asked by LEAs must reflect the particular circumstances of that child.  It recognises, moreover, that children's learning difficulties may encompass more than one area of need.  Nonetheless, parents, schools and LEAs should always be alive to the nature of the child's learning difficulty or disability, and should address the indicative questions which most closely fit the child's circumstances.


Learning difficulties

3:55.   Some children with learning difficulties will be identified before school age and the great majority should be identified very early in their school careers.  Their general level of academic attainment will be significantly below that of their peers.  In most cases, they will have difficulty acquiring basic literacy and numeracy skills and many will have significant speech and language difficulties.  Some may also have poor social skills and may show signs of emotional and behavioural difficulties.