Country information for UK (Wales) - Legislation and policy

Before 1999, the United Kingdom (UK) Parliament made all education legislation for Wales. In later years, policy on education and training in Wales was managed in Wales. A devolved National Assembly was set up in 1999, now called Senedd Cymru or Welsh Parliament. The Welsh Government now has wide-ranging powers on education and training in relation to schools and higher and further education. The legal structure is therefore a mixture of UK (England and Wales) and Welsh legislation, and the Welsh Government is developing a distinctive approach tailored to Wales.

The Education Act 1996 is the basis of the education system. It imposes a range of duties on local authorities (LAs) – the administrative areas responsible for providing statutory education – in England and Wales. With regard to special educational needs (SEN), the Act requires that LAs:

  • identify children with SEN;
  • where necessary, assess children’s needs, taking account of educational, medical, psychological and other factors;
  • where necessary, make a formal statement of needs and specify the provision which should be made to meet them.

The authority is then responsible for ensuring that the learner receives this support.

The Learning and Skills Act 2000 sets out the need to identify learners with a learning difficulty and/or disability (LDD) in post-16 education. Welsh Ministers (the Welsh Government) are responsible for the assessment of post-16 learners with LDD who have left or are about to leave school. They are also responsible for securing specialist post-16 provision where this is necessary.

The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, which amended the Welsh Language Act 1993, states that the Welsh language should be treated no less favourably than the English language in public services in Wales. In the context of SEN, public bodies should ensure that their services, where appropriate and practicable, are delivered in Welsh and/or English according to pupils’ and parents’ needs and wishes.

The Equality Act 2010 places a duty on schools and LAs not to discriminate against pupils with disabilities. They must not treat these pupils less favourably because of their disability and must take reasonable steps to ensure that they are not substantially disadvantaged compared to those without disabilities. LAs and schools are also required to work to improve accessibility for pupils with disabilities to school premises and to the curriculum, and to improve delivery of accessible written information.

Reform of SEN legislation: Additional Learning Needs

The Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018 is expected to come into force from September 2021 and the implementation period will last until 2024. Until then, local authorities must ensure they continue to comply with the duties placed upon them by the Education Act 1996 and the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice for Wales (2002).

The Act will replace the terms ‘special educational needs’ and ‘learning difficulties and/or disabilities’ with ‘additional learning needs’ (ALN).

The Act will place the learner at the heart of the process and make the system far more equitable, simpler and less adversarial for those involved. It will:

  • create a single legislative system to support children and young people aged 0 to 25 who have additional learning needs, instead of the two separate systems currently operating;
  • replace the terms special educational needs and learning difficulties and/or disabilities with the new term – additional learning needs;
  • replace the system of statementing and create a statutory individual development plan to replace the existing range of statutory and non-statutory plans for learners. This will ensure equity of rights regardless of the learner’s level of need or the education setting they attend;
  • consider the views of learners and parents throughout the planning process so that it is done with all parties rather than to them, ensuring that the child or young person is at the centre of everything;
  • encourage better collaboration between agencies, so that needs are identified early and the right support is put in place.

The Act is one part of a wider ALN Transformation Programme, which aims to change not just the legal framework but the whole approach for supporting children and young people in Wales.

The ALN system proposed for Wales is radically different to the SEN system in England: the two are not directly comparable. In particular, the legislative landscape in Wales (unlike that in England) will be shaped by provisions in both the Act and the mandatory Code.

The Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act targets all learners who have a learning difficulty or disability which calls for additional learning provision. It does not differentiate between different types of additional learning need because it seeks to ensure that all needs are met equitably and comprehensively.

 

Last updated 03/05/2021

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