1. ABC Schools and Disability Jackie Jackson-Smith Provision Development Officer, SENaPS Chris Percival Team Manager, Statutory Assessment Service

2. ABC Objectives Through information sharing and group discussion provide participants with the opportunity to:  reflect on the definition of and issues relating to discrimination  develop a clear overview of the Code of Practice and it’s implications for schools  understand LEA and school access planning responsibilities and processes

3. ABC Programme Part 1  Overview of the legislation and related guidance  Disability discrimination - what is it?  The Duties - what is covered and who is responsible  Case studies  Exceptions Part 2  LEA and school planning responsibilities  Access audits  Redress and conciliation

4. ABC Key documents u The Disability Act 1995 (as amended by the SEN and Disability Act 2001) u Schools Disability Code of Practice [Disability Rights Commission] u Accessible Schools: Planning to increase access to schools for disabled pupils [DfES]

5. ABC Related documents

6. ABC Schools Disability Code of Practice u This Code of Practice is being issued by the Disability Rights Commission under the provisions of the DDA’95 and at the request of the Secretary of State for Education and Skills u The purpose of the Code is to give practical guidance to schools as to:  what constitutes discrimination and  how they can avoid discriminating against disabled pupils and prospective pupils

7. ABC Duty not to discriminate u As from 1 September 2002 it is unlawful for schools to discriminate, without justification, against disabled pupils u Discrimination embraces two core elements  treating a disabled pupil less favourably for a reason relating to his/her disability  failing to comply with the duty to make ‘reasonable adjustments’

8. ABC The extent of the duties u The twin duties - not to discriminate and to make reasonable adjustments - apply to  admissions  education and associated services - i.e. curriculum, teaching and learning, classroom organisation, time-tabling, pupil groupings, homework, sports, breaks and lunchtimes, exam arrangements, school clubs, school trips etc., etc.  Exclusions u Reasonable adjustment duty is anticipatory  “… duty owed to disabled children in general…not waiting until a disabled child seeks admission to the school …”

9. ABC What is disability... ? u A disabled person is someone who has … “a physical or mental impairment which has substantial and long term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day to day activities” u The effect must be  substantial (more than minor or trivial)  long term (lasting a year or more)  adverse ………..

10. ABC u This definition includes sensory and hidden impairments such as:  mental illness or mental health problems  learning difficulties  dyslexia  diabetes  epilepsy u Not all disabled children will have a special educational need, although many will, and not all children with special educational needs will have a disability

11. ABC Who is responsible? u In the case of maintained schools the ‘responsible body’ is generally the schools’ governing body u Note though that the LEA is the responsible body  in relation to admissions to community and voluntary controlled schools  for maintained nursery schools and PRUs

12. ABC Less favourable treatment A school discriminates against a disabled child if: u it treats the child less favourably, for a reason relating to his/her disability, than it treats, or would treat, others to whom that reason does not or would not apply u it cannot show that the particular treatment is justified

13. ABC Questions to ask u Is it less favourable treatment  for a reason that is related to the child’s disability?  than someone gets if the reason does not apply to him/her?  that can justified?

14. ABC Example u A father seeks admission to a primary school for his son who has epilepsy. The school tells him that they cannot take the boy unless he stops having fits. Is this discrimination? u Is it less favourable treatment for a reason related to the child’s disability? u Probably - having fits is an intrinsic part of the boy’s disability u Is it less favourable treatment than someone gets if the reason does not apply to him/her? u Yes - other children without this disability do not have this condition placed on their admission u Is it justified? u The responsible body does not seek to justify their less favourable treatment. u So it would be unlawful discrimination

15. ABC Failure to make reasonable adjustments u A school discriminates against the disabled child if  it fails to take reasonable steps to ensure that disabled pupils are not placed at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with their non- disabled peers  the responsible body cannot justify its failure to make reasonable adjustments

16. ABC Exceptions to ‘reasonable adjustments’ duty u Schools are not required to  provide auxiliary aids or services (the presumption in the Code of Practice is that any necessary aids and services will be made under the SEN framework)  remove or alter physical features (physical adaptations to school buildings are covered by the longer term planning duties)

17. ABC Justification u Less favourable treatment may be justified:  as a result of a permitted form selection or  for reasons “material to the circumstances of the particular case and substantial” u Failure to make a reasonable adjustment may be justified on grounds of:  a need to maintain standards  financial resources available/cost  practicality  health and safety considerations  the interests of other pupils

18. ABC The ‘lack of knowledge’ defence u A responsible body would no be liable to a claim of unlawful discrimination:  if it did not know and could not reasonably have been expected to know about the disability

19. ABC Confidentiality requests u A parent can ask the school to keep confidential the nature of, or existence of, their children’s disability (Such a request may also come from a child) u Schools should take into account any such requests - but are not bound to comply (If not the school should record its reasons) u Where a school does comply with such a request it should make clear to the parents that this may limit the ‘reasonable adjustments it might otherwise take.

20. ABC Schools and Disability

21. ABC Planning - in context u To recap, as from September 2002 it will be unlwful for schools, without justification, to discriminate and/or to fail to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ u But with the best will in the world some barriers will remain u The DDA’95, as amended, therefore imposes a new duty on LEAs and schools to plan to eliminate barriers in the longer term

22. ABC Accessibility plans and strategies u LEAs and schools are, respectively, under a duty to prepare accessibility strategies and accessibility plans aimed at:  increasing the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the curriculum  improving the physical environment  making accessible to disabled pupils information which is presented in writing to those not disabled u The planning duties comes into force on 1 September 2002 but plans need not be produced until April 2003.

23. ABC ‘Accessible Schools: Planning to increase access to schools for disabled pupils’ u This guidance document is being issued by the DfES to explain and illustrate the new planning duties u It should be read alongside the Schools Disability Code of Practice and the SEN Code of Practice

24. ABC Accessibility strategy u The LEA’s accessibility strategy will:  be based on information about the accessibility of Essex schools (Asset Management Plan)  set goals, targets and time-scales  allocate Schools Access Initiative funding  relate to the allocation of capital funding

25. ABC Information needed by the LEA u The DfES expects schools to provide information to enable LEAs to draw up their accessibility strategies u In Essex the LEA already holds much information and at this stage will be doing no more than sending out a brief questionnaire to consolidate information on wheelchair access.

26. ABC School accessibility plans u “ The School Accessibility Plan should be responsive to the needs of the school and of the pupils accessing the education and other services provided by the school.” u “Schools cannot wait for LEAs to make them accessible. Schools will have to consider what they can do to improve the accessibility of the school within their delegated budget, including the use of devolved capital funding.”

27. ABC Creating an access plan Annex E to the DfES guidance document provides an example of a plan in the following format Targets Strategies Outcome Timeframe Goals achieved Short term Medium term Long term

28. ABC The DfES planning model Setting up of an accessibility planning group Evaluation strategies Access audit and review of current activities Setting goals and Devising of Utilise targets strategies available expertise

29. ABC Setting up a planning group u The DfES suggest that in larger schools members could include:  SEN link governor  parent  disabled pupil  voluntary organisation representative  head teacher u In smaller schools the plan might be taken forward by  the senior leadership team

30. ABC Utilise available expertise u In any event schools should consult widely and seek to involve those such as:  disabled pupils  parents of disabled pupils  local voluntary and disability organisations  specialist teachers

31. ABC Access audit and review of current activities u Conduct access audit (see checklist at Annex D in DfES guidance document) u Use audit tools to review current activities (see next two slides for suggestions) u Identify areas in need of change

32. ABC DfES suggested audit tools

33. ABC Schools might also consider

34. ABC Devise strategies to eliminate barriers u Identify training needs u Consider organisational and curricular barriers u List and categorise necessary building adaptations  refurbishment and maintenance  minor capital - e.g. ramps, handrails, installation of Soundfield system, moving science lab or library to ground floor  major capital - e.g. installing a lift, making linkway between accessible and inaccessible floors u Prioritise into short, medium and long term u Co-ordinate with existing plans

35. ABC Funding the plan u Potential funding streams  major capital scheme (from LEA funds)  local scheme using devolved capital or non-public funds - e.g. a bequest  Seed Challenge  special government initiative  capitalised repair and maintenance  devolved repair and maintenance u [Ensure all school-funded improvements meet DfES standards]

36. ABC Ensuring the plan’s future u DfES suggest that whilst the plan may initially be discrete  it should in time be integrated with School Development Plan  whilst the planning process should become a “thread running through” all the school’s plans and policies - e.g. capital works and premises management curriculum planning IT support staff training

37. ABC Publication of the plan u In maintained schools the plan must be published in the annual governor’s report to parents. u It is recommended that:  the plan is published in full and  made even more widely available including circulation to staff and pupils... “to encourage a sense of ownership”

38. ABC Evaluation Strategies u Schools are required to keep their plans under review u Evaluation strategies should be developed in connection with goals, targets and time frames u Success indicators might include:  an increased number of disabled pupils  observable changes in staff confidence  evidence of greater participation of disabled pupils in school life (e.g. after school clubs)  greater satisfaction of parents of disabled pupils

39. ABC Implementing the plan u The DfES guidance concludes  “Once a school has produced an accessibility plan, the school is under a statutory duty to implement the plan and to allocate adequate resources for it.” u Note though that the DDA’95 merely says  “In preparing an accessibility plan, the responsible body must have regard to the need to allocate adequate resources for implementing the plan”

40. ABC Redress and conciliation u As from September 2002 the SEN and Disability Tribunal will hear claims of unlawful discrimination u The tribunal will have the power to  declare unlawful discrimination  order remedies  but will not be able to award financial compensation u Alongside this the Disability Rights Commission will offer a conciliation service to promote the settlement of claims without the need for a tribunal hearing