Scottish charity includem has published a new education briefing highlighting serious concerns about the impact of under-resourced Additional Support for Learning in mainstream schools and the increasing use of part-time timetables for children and young people with complex needs.
The briefing draws on evidence gathered over recent months from includem workers across Scotland, capturing frontline experience of the challenges children, young people and families face in accessing appropriate support in education.
It focuses on two interconnected issues, Additional Support for Learning and part-time timetables, which includem says must be understood together to fully reflect the realities facing many families.
The charity’s practice model is built on engagement, assessment, goal setting, structured coaching, practical and emotional support and regular review. Staff say this approach is often missing from education planning for the children and families they support.
The briefing finds that Additional Support for Learning in mainstream education is woefully under-resourced, leaving many children without the help they need to engage in learning. As a result, part-time timetables and flexible learning arrangements are frequently used in place of meaningful additional support rather than as planned short-term interventions.
Includem report that while part-time timetables can be beneficial for some children, particularly those experiencing anxiety, they are often introduced due to a lack of appropriate support, choice or personalisation within mainstream education. In many cases these arrangements are allowed to continue without regular review and clear progression planning.
At the time of data collection for the briefing, includem was supporting 36 young people in Aberdeen. Of these, 12 had already left school prematurely, 16 were attending full time, seven were attending school on a part-time basis and one young person was not attending education at all. Includem says this snapshot reflects a wider pattern of children gradually disengaging from education when their needs are not met early or effectively.
The briefing also highlights the significant impact on families and carers who are often left to navigate complex systems while managing increased caring responsibilities. Includem warns this can place considerable strain on mental health, wellbeing, employment and family relationships.
Safeguarding concerns are also raised where children and young people spend significant time out of school without appropriate supervision. Schools are widely recognised as a vital protective factor in children’s lives, and reduced attendance can increase vulnerability to harm in the community.
Includem is calling for greater investment in Additional Support for Learning within mainstream education, improved training and support for teachers on trauma and neurodiversity, stronger oversight and review of part-time timetables and flexible learning arrangements, increased access to alternative and vocational learning opportunities, and whole family support to help families navigate the education system and ensure children’s voices are heard.
Martyn Walker, Communications & Public Affairs Manager at includem said:
“What we are seeing is not a lack of willingness from children to learn or from families to engage, but a system under pressure that is struggling to meet need. Part-time timetables and flexible learning arrangements can help when used well, but too often they are filling gaps left by under-resourced support. We believe this is giving a false glory to the impressive drop in exclusion figures across Scotland. Without proper review, safeguarding and family support, children risk being quietly pushed further away from education.”
The briefing is intended to inform national and local decision-makers and to support improvements in education policy and practice for children and young people with additional support needs.
The full education briefing is available at: https://issuu.com/includem2000_/docs/transforming_lives_wfs_education_
Contact includem at publicaffairs@includem.co.uk.
Includem is a Scottish charity founded in 2000 which supports children, young people, and families to transform their lives. The charity’s National Office is situated in Glasgow, with regional offices in Grampian, Tayside, Fife, and Forth Valley. Further information is available on includem’s website includem.org.
Further information contact comms@includem.co.uk.
