To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that local authorities provide co-ordinated support plans for pupils who need extra support. (S6O-04469)

We must be clear that arrangements for a co-ordinated support plan should be put in place to enable crucial individual support and interventions when multiple agencies are involved in supporting a child or young person, but that having such a plan is not a requirement for accessing additional support for learning. When a young person or child requires a co-ordinated support plan, education authorities have a legal duty to put arrangements in place to identify that need.

I am committed to including further clarity on the relationship between the CSP and other plans in a staged intervention model that will form part of the refreshed code of practice on additional support for learning. Meanwhile, as part of our work on the ASL action plan, we are developing national professional learning resources and accessible information and guidance on CSPs for children, young people, parents and carers.

As the cabinet secretary mentioned, demand for additional support needs services is rising. Consistency in the provision of such services across local authority areas is imperative. My recent casework suggests that my local education authority is reluctant to implement co-ordinated support plans and will call any other plan anything but a CSP that has statutory underpinning. We have made referrals to the Enquire advice service, which has helped my constituents who seek additional support needs services and parents who want to establish co-ordinated support plans. I would welcome the cabinet secretary’s assessment of the position and ask her to outline the Scottish Government’s guidance on ensuring consistency of approach across local authority areas on determining which plans are relevant in—

Thank you, Ms Adamson. The cabinet secretary has got the gist of your question.

I welcome the fact that support has been provided by the Enquire service, which is funded by the Scottish Government. Members have raised several points about the statutory responsibilities of local authorities; I need to be mindful of the position. Local authorities hold the legislative responsibility to deliver our education services. However, we need to work in partnership with them, which is why I mentioned the education assurance board in a number of my earlier responses. The approach that we have set out allows local authorities to respond to the individual needs of their children and young people accordingly. If the member were able to share more information with me on the specific issue that she has raised, I would be happy to engage with her on that.

Through the budget, we are putting in the extra funding that I mentioned. We are also providing an extra £15 million per year and, separately, £11 million to directly support pupils with complex additional support needs and provide services to children and families. The member spoke to some of that work, which is being delivered via Enquire.