This is our response to the Education, Children and Young People Committee’s call for views on Additional Support for Learning (ASL).
Overall, our response is summed up by saying that while we support mainstreaming in principle, it must be sufficiently funded.
While there will be some very good practice going on in some schools, it is currently not working well for too many children, those with identified Additional Support Needs, and other pupils.
Despite the best efforts of dedicated teaching and support staff and other education professionals, they do not have sufficient resources and support to deliver the quality learning experience all pupils deserve.
As one senior worker told us: “Sadly the presumption of mainstreaming has had a negative impact for ASN pupils. This is completely down to the lack of resourcing, direct training and appropriate funding. This has also had a negative impact on the learning of children across Scotland.”