Concerns raised as co-ordinated support plans drop. 

The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), is calling for urgent action following a sharp decline in the number of legally binding education support plans for those with complex or multiple additional support needs (ASN).

So-called co-ordinated support plans (CSPs), prepared by local authorities, are the only education plans that are legal documents.  

These provide some guarantees of entitlement to additional resources and legal redress, placing statutory duties on local authorities to review and ensure the provisions contained within it are being met.

However, despite a Scottish Government promise that there would be no reduction in the proportion of pupils receiving them since their introduction in 2004, there has been a significant fall in the number of pupils with a CSP, as highlighted in the recent Scottish Government’s annual census of pupils and teachers in publicly funded schools.

In 2014, there were 3,128 pupils with such a plan. However, by 2024 this number had fallen to 1,215. This amounts to a drop of 61.1% and is a reduction from 2.2% to 0.4% of those with ASN, amounting to 0.2 per cent of the pupil population.

This sharp fall in the number of CSPs contrasts with a dramatic increase in number of pupils with ASN, such as autism, dyslexia and mental health problems, which in 2024 reached a record high of 284,448. 

This represents 40.5% of the pupil population, rising from 140,542 in 2014 (20.8% of all pupils),  amounting to a more than doubling (102.4%) in numbers over the past decade.

A concern raised by the alliance of providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people is that local authorities are reluctant to issue CSPs because they are seen as cumbersome and time-consuming, as well as being resource-intensive and subject to enhanced scrutiny.

This is all set against the backdrop of a lack of resources, with many local authorities now reluctant to provide what would be legally enforceable support, due to cuts in health, education and social work services. 

With legal action taken if the needs of the child or young person are not believed to have been met, non-statutory alternatives are often being offered in their place, with families or carers not being offered the option of a CSP.

Despite a greater prevalence of those with ASN in the most deprived communities, CSPs are more likely to be opened for pupils with ASN living in the least deprived neighbourhoods, compared with those living in the most deprived neighbourhoods. This means that they may not be getting the care and support they so vitally need.

The SCSC has called for an expansion in access to CSPs, with the Scottish Government, local authorities, health and other relevant agencies collaborating more effectively to ensure that those requiring such a legal plan receive one.

This needs to be supported by the necessary resourcing of the services involved, and increased awareness and understanding of CSPs by families or carers, and professionals. This includes training for local authority and school staff, including highlighting statutory entitlements.

The SCSC has also called for a particular focus on care- experienced children and young people, and those from the most deprived neighbourhoods.

A spokesperson for the charity said: “We are calling for action following figures highlighting a decline in the use of CSPs, which are designed to support those with the most complex needs.  This is despite a Scottish Government assurance that they would not decline and against the backdrop of a dramatic increase in the numbers of those with ASN.

“By not providing this legally enforceable provision, many of these vulnerable individuals are being failed and not getting the support they are entitled to. This is of particular significance given the devastating impact of Covid-19 and cost-of-living crisis. The Scottish Government, local authorities and other agencies need to collaborate to ensure that those requiring a CSP receive it, with the necessary resourcing in place to support this.

“With those with ASN drawn disproportionately from poorer neighbourhoods, if we are to genuinely close the educational attainment gap, they must get the care and support they need, when they need it.”