Complete national overview - United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

Legal System

In the north of Ireland, the purpose of special educational provision is to remove or diminish the barriers to achievement, which children and young people with special needs may face.  These may include the classroom approach to learning or the physical nature of the learning environment.  

The Education (NI) Order 1996 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability (NI) Order 2005, (SENDO) place the statutory responsibility for securing provision for pupils with special educational needs with the Education and Library Boards (ELBs) and schools.  

The legislative definition of special educational needs (SEN) is: 

• “a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made. 

 A child has a learning difficulty if:

• s/he has a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of his/her his age; or
• a disability which either prevents or hinders him/her from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of his/her age in ordinary schools; or
• s/he has not attained the lower limit of compulsory school age and is, or would be, if special educational provision were not made for him/her, likely to fall into the two categories above when s/he is of compulsory school age. 

The provisions in the Education (NI) 1996 Order, introduced significant new rights for parents, including extended rights of appeal against ELB decisions. 

The 1996 Order also provided for: -

• the formal introduction of a statutory Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of SEN, to which schools and ELBs are required to have regard in dealing with all children with special educational needs; and
• the setting of statutory time limits on ELBs, for completing SEN assessments and issuing proposed statements to parents.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability (NI) Order 2005 (SENDO) became operational on 1st September 2005.  

The objective of this legislation is to further strengthen the rights of children with SEN to be educated in mainstream schools, where parents want this and the interests of other children can be protected. 

SENDO introduced disability discrimination provisions that apply to schools and boards here.  

The remit of the Special Educational Needs Tribunal, now known as the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal (SENDIST), was extended to hear claims of disability discrimination against schools and boards.

SENDO placed new duties on ELBs including the provision of advice and information on SEN matters for parents, schools and an informal means for avoiding and resolving disputes between parents and schools and/or ELBs – the DARS (Dispute Avoidance and Resolution Service). 

SENDO requires the ELBs and other school authorities to review and improve physical accessibility to school buildings.  DE has provided £32m for this purpose.

Financing

The level of funding for special education is determined by the ELBs as part of their annual decisions about the allocation of their block grant.  Special Schools have partially delegated budgets, with all pupil related costs being retained centrally by the ELBs.

Identification of special educational needs

The Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs sets out a 5-stage approach to the process.  Some children may move between stages as their needs are met. Some children will have their needs met locally by their own school.  Some children’s needs will be so great that they require specialist intervention through the completion of a Statement of Special Educational Needs by the ELB.

• Stage 1 is school based.  Here some initial concern might be expressed and the class teacher will inform the SEN Co-ordinator (SENCO) in the school, who will register the child’s special needs.  The teacher will assess the needs and give special help within the normal classroom setting.
• Stage 2 is school based.  Here the SENCO and the class teacher will draw up and implement an individualised Education Plan. 
• Stage 3 is also school-based, but here Stage 3 support can be sought by the school from external specialist services, including those provided from the ELB.  A revised Education Plan is drawn up to reflect the additional support. 
• Stage 4 is where the ELB considers the need for a statutory assessment.  A child would be referred to the ELB by the school or parent and the ELB has then 6 weeks to decide if it will conduct a statutory assessment. If the ELB decides to conduct a statutory assessment it will seek parental and professional opinion to enable them to undertake the assessment. ELBs have a further 10 weeks to conduct the assessment and decide if a Statement is needed.  A statutory assessment will not always lead to a Statement.
• Stage 5 – the Statement.   This is where the ELB has decided that the degree of the child’s learning difficulty or disability, and the nature of the provision necessary to meet the child’s needs, require it to determine the SEN provision through making a statement.  If a statement is to be made, the ELB has a further 10 weeks to put in place a final Statement.  DE requires ELBs to achieve 100% of statements drafted within the 18 weeks statutory timeframe, subject only to the exemptions as outlined in the Code of Practice. 

Special needs education within the education system

SEN provision is matched to the individual needs of the child.  Provision may be made in special schools, designed, for example, for children with particular needs eg Severe learning Difficulties (SLD), Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD); in special units attached to mainstream schools or in mainstream classes themselves.  It may consist of home or hospital tuition, pre-school support or placement outside Northern Ireland.  In Northern Ireland there are 44 special schools (including 2 hospital schools) and approximately 170 special units attached to around 100 mainstream schools, which cater for a wide range of special educational needs.  Units make specialist provision for needs such as; Autism; speech, language and communication difficulties; hearing impairment; moderate learning difficulties.

SEN Review

A current policy review of special educational needs and inclusion within the Department of Education has considered issues within the existing framework around unacceptable levels of bureaucracy attached to the statutory assessment process, the need for early identification and prompt interventions and capacity building in mainstream schools.  The draft policy proposals arising from the Review were presented to the Education Committee on 23 May 2008.  Due to the cross cutting nature of the draft policy proposals, the SEN and Inclusion Review’s Policy Proposals Consultation Document are to be considered by the Executive, prior to issue for public consultation. It is hoped that this will happen before the end of the current academic year (2009/10).

Development of Inclusion 

Inclusion of children with special educational needs into mainstream settings is a key tenet of the Department's policy, while recognising that there should be a continuum of provision to meet a diversity of need, which through legislation recognises the individual needs of the child.  The continuum of provision will therefore include placements of children in mainstream classes, special units attached to mainstream schools, in special schools within the grant -aided sector and also in a small number of independent special schools.   

The Education and Training Inspectorate inspects special educational provision across the range of school types and settings and in recent inspections has found quality provision being made in both special schools and in special units attached to mainstream schools.