UK (Wales) - Country Background Information
- Describing the forms of education in the country
- Identifying an ‘inclusive setting’ in the country
- What an ‘official decision of SEN’ means in the country
- What ‘out-of-education’ means in the country
The EASIE data collection covers all recognised forms of education at ISCED levels 02, 1, 2 and 3.
This means any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector: municipality, local or regional educational provider from the public or private sector, working with/for ministries responsible for education and areas such as health, social, welfare, labour, justice, etc.
5–16
What are the typical age ranges for the ISCED levels?
| ISCED LEVEL 02 | ISCED LEVEL 1 | ISCED LEVEL 2 | ISCED LEVEL 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–4 | 5–10 | 11–15 | 16–18 |
Private sector means independent schools which charge fees and may also be financed by individuals, companies or charitable institutions.
The data on ‘forms of alternative education’ covers pupils receiving Education Other than at School (EOTAS), including at Pupil Referral Units (PRUs). The data focuses on children receiving education funded by a Local Authority other than at school, as defined in Section 19(1) of the Education Act 1996, i.e. those children of compulsory school age who, by reason of illness, exclusion or otherwise may not for any period receive suitable education.
In the EASIE data collection, an inclusive setting is operationally defined as:
A recognised form of education where the child/learner follows education in mainstream classes alongside their peers for the largest part – 80% or more – of the school week.
The 80% time placement benchmark clearly indicates that a child/learner is educated in a mainstream class for the majority of their school week. At the same time, it acknowledges possibilities for small group or one-to-one withdrawal for limited periods of time (i.e. 20% or one day a week).
Very few participating countries can provide exact data on children/learners spending 80% of their time in a mainstream group/class. However, all countries can apply one of three agreed proxies that provide an approximation to this benchmark:
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 80% or more
- Data is available on the number of hours of support allocated to a child/learner
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 50% or more.
In the EASIE data collection, the agreed operational definition is:
An official decision leads to a child/learner being recognised as eligible for additional educational support to meet their learning needs.
Countries may have different types of official decision, but for all official decisions:
- There has been some form of educational assessment procedure involving different people. This procedure may involve the child/learner, parents, school-based team members, as well as professionals from multi-disciplinary teams from outside the child’s/learner’s (pre-)school.
- There is some form of legal document (plan/programme, etc.) that describes the support the child/learner is eligible to receive, which is used as the basis for decision-making.
- There is some form of regular review process of the child/learner’s needs, progress and support.
Wales is currently implementing the additional learning needs (ALN) system, a new system for supporting children and young people aged 0 to 25 in Wales with ALN. The ALN system is replacing the special educational learning needs (SEN) system and the system for supporting young people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD).
Since 1 January 2022, most children newly identified as potentially having ALN are considered under the ALN system.
An ‘official decision’ on whether a learner has ALN, requires the deciding body to consider whether the learner has a learning difficulty or disability and if so, whether the learning difficulty or disability calls for additional learning provision (ALP). ALP for a person aged 3 or over means educational or training provision that is additional to, or different from, that made generally available for others of the same age in mainstream maintained schools in Wales.
If the learner has a learning difficulty or disability which requires ALP, the child or young person has ALN.
Decisions on whether a learner has ALN will be based on evidence from their education setting, other services involved with the learner (including specialist services where applicable), from the learner themselves or from their parents or carers. Different sources of evidence may be used, including, but not limited to:
- Standardised screening or assessment tools and frameworks
- Observational data
- Quality of their work
- Developmental checklists
- Scaling questionnaires
- Assessment through intervention
- Assessments from other agencies, such as health bodies
- Behaviour and social emotional questionnaires and standardised tests
- Other forms of personalised assessments.
Under the ALN system learners determined to have ALN will have an individual development plan (IDP). IDPs are statutory plans created under the ALN and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018. A learner may have either a school or a local authority maintained IDP.
The IDP is replacing the statements of SEN, Individual Education Plans (IEPs) and learning and skills plans (LSPs) used for learners on the SEN system.
A school, pupil referral unit, further education institution or local authority is responsible for determining ALN and preparing and maintaining an IDP.
Under the ALN and Education Tribunal Act (Wales) 2018, the body maintaining the IDP must review the IDP at least annually, to ensure the information in it and the provision it describes, remain accurate.
Within the EASIE data collection, specific questions examine children/learners who are out of education. This means children/learners who should, by law, be in some form of recognised education, but who are out of any form of recognised education. A recognised form of education is any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector.
The definition of children and young people of compulsory school age who are not in any sort of education is ‘Children Missing Education’. There is statutory guidance to help prevent children and young people from missing education.
Some families choose to home educate their children rather than send them to school. These children are only ‘children missing education’ if they are not in receipt of a suitable education. There is a duty under s.436A of the 1996 Education Act which requires that local authorities must make arrangements to find out as far as possible whether home educated children are receiving suitable full-time education. If local authorities are not satisfied, then these children are regarded as Children Missing Education.
The Additional Learning Needs system
The Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018 (the Act) makes provision for a new statutory framework for supporting children and young people with ALN in Wales. This replaced the previous legislation surrounding SEN and the assessment of children and young people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities in post-16 education and training.
Alongside the Act there is a code of practice on additional learning needs – Additional Learning Needs Code for Wales (2021) (the ALN Code), which contains further requirements for bodies and guidance on how they are to exercise their functions, including how assessments and decisions about provision are to be conducted.
The ALN Code and regulations came into force on 1 September 2021 to ensure children and young people aged 0 to 25 can access additional support to meet their needs that is properly planned for and protected, with learners at the heart of the process.
The ALN system is replacing the special educational needs (SEN) system. Children with SEN are moving to the ALN system in groups over four years (from September 2021 – 31 August 2025), to ensure enough time for nurseries, schools, pupil referral units and local authorities to discuss the support needed and to prepare plans.
During this transition period the ALN and SEN systems are running in parallel. Therefore, the data for Wales will include learners on the ALN and SEN system. Data on pupils on the SEN system will no longer be collected when transition and implementation of the ALN system is complete.
Private sector education
It is possible the current data collection for private sector education (independent schools) does not completely cover the number of pupils with IDPs. Therefore, it is possible the data is an undercount of the true number of learners with additional learning needs in private sector education. The Welsh Government will be making amendments to its independent school data collection in the future.