SEND law in Scotland
Scotland has a distinct approach to SEND support with laws, regulations, and processes that differ from the rest of the UK. In this Guide we’ll introduce you to some of the laws and regulations that apply in Scotland and help you understand the rights that you and your child have.
Getting It Right For Every Child
Getting It Right For Every Child (often abbreviated to GIRFEC) is the Scottish national policy for improving the wellbeing of children and young people. It aims to ensure that every child, young person, and their families get the support they need at the right time so they can reach their full potential.
It does that by providing a set of principles, value, ways of working, and a shared language for everyone working with children in Scotland. Elements of GIRFEC were enshrined in law in The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 and in later laws. So professionals you come into contact with should abide by the principles and values of GIRFEC.
GIRFEC defines eight wellbeing indicators that professionals and organisation working with children should use when considering the wellbeing of a child. The indicators state that all children should be:
- Safe: growing up in an environment where a child or young person feels secure, nurtured, listened to and enabled to develop to their full potential. This includes freedom from abuse or neglect.
- Healthy: having the highest attainable standards of physical and mental health, access to suitable healthcare, and support in learning to make healthy and safe choices.
- Achieving: being supported and guided in learning and in the development of skills, confidence and self-esteem, at home, in school and in the community.
- Nurtured: growing, developing and being cared for in an environment which provides the physical and emotional security, compassion and warmth necessary for healthy growth and to develop resilience and a positive identity.
- Active: having opportunities to take part in activities such as play, recreation and sport, which contribute to healthy growth and development, at home, in school and in the community.
- Respected: being involved in and having their voices heard in decisions that affect their life, with support where appropriate.
- Responsible: having opportunities and encouragement to play active and responsible roles at home, in school and in the community, and where necessary, having appropriate guidance and supervision.
- Included: having help to overcome inequalities and being accepted as part of their family, school and community.
If you would like to read GIRFEC in detail click the button below.
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international treaty signed by 196 countries. It lays out the rights that every child in the world should have and how adults and governments must ensure that children can enjoy their rights. It covers a very broad range of rights: from basic rights to life, protection, and freedom from abuse, to health, education, and cultural rights.
The Convention was adopted in the UK in 1992 and in 2024 a Scottish Government law came into force that puts the convention at the heart of decisions about children in Scotland.
Every public body in Scotland – such as local councils, the NHS, Children’s Hearings Scotland, and National Parks – must now ensure that every act they take is compatible with the Convention. That means they can’t do anything that harms children’s rights. The law also gives children and young people more legal powers to take action if public bodies break the terms of the convention.
You can read more about the Convention, including a summary of all the rights it gives children, by clicking the button below.
Support with the law
The law can be very complex and its not always easy to understand your rights or the support that your child is entitled to. There are various organisations that can help, either by giving you advice about your rights, signposting you to appropriate places to get support, or by supporting you directly. Take a look at our guide on SEND Organisations in Scotland to see some of those.
The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014
This is a very broad law, possibly the most substantial piece of legislation relating to children in the past two decades. It touches on many aspects of children’s lives including education, wellbeing, children’s hearings, looked after children, early learning, and childcare. The act enshrines elements of the ‘Getting it Right for Every Child’(GIRFEC) approach in law.
In relation to disabled children, one of its key aims is to make sure that there is a single planning approach for every child/young person who needs additional support. Every child whose wellbeing is at risk for any reason should have a ‘Child’s Plan’ that sets out what their needs are, what interventions are going to happen to support those needs, and who is going to do it.
The Act also enshrines the GIRFEC wellbeing indicators (see above) into law.
One controversial aspect is the Named Person scheme contained in the Act. A named person is a professional within a local authority or other public body who is available to a family to provide them with information and co-ordinate support. The Scottish Government says the aim of the scheme was to ensure that parents and carers always had one single named person they knew was available to them and there for them.
However, the scheme proved controversial, with some people opposed to the idea of a named person being forced on every child. The universal scheme was halted and, currently, a named person is available to families who want one but there is no obligation if families do not want one.
Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act (2004)
This law (which was later amended by another Act in 2009) is often called the ASL Act. It aims to ensure that all children and young people are provided with the necessary support to help them work towards achieving their full potential. It also promotes collaborative working among all those supporting children and young people and sets out parents’ rights within the system.
The acts introduced the phrase ‘Additional Support Needs’ (ASN) as a description of those who, for whatever reason, require additional support to what is normally provided, in the long or short term, in order to help them make the most of their school education.
ASN criteria are broad and include children who:
- Have a learning disability
- Are particularly gifted
- Are being bullied
- Have English as a second language
- Are young carers or the sibling of a disabled child
- Are in care
- Have emotional or social difficulties
- Are living with parents with mental health or substance abuse problems
The Act also introduced the concept of a Co-ordinated Support Plan. That is a plan that must be prepared by the local authority for any child who has additional support needs. The plan must set out what the child’s needs are, where those needs arise from, what support is required by the child, and who will provide that support.
In 2017 the Scottish Government introduced further Statutory Guidance about the sections of the Act relating to Additional Support for Learning. Local Authorities must follow that guidance when they decide how to implement the law.
To read more about the Acts and the Guidance click the buttons below.
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