Memorandum submitted by RNIB
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. INTRODUCTION
RNIB is the UK's leading charity offering information,
advice and guidance to over two million people with sight problems,
with a national Children's Services team concerned with the interests
of blind and partially sighted children and young people, including
those with additional needs. We are pleased to have this opportunity
to submit evidence to the Select Committee on Special Educational
Needs and would welcome the opportunity to supplement this information
with oral evidence.
2. RNIB'S POLICY
POSITION ON
THE EDUCATION
OF BLIND
AND PARTIALLY
SIGHTED PUPILS
RNIB believes that every pupil with a visual
impairment is entitled to high quality education with equal access
to appropriate specialist provision no matter where he/she
lives within the UK.
3. PROVISION
FOR SEN PUPILS
IN MAINSTREAM
SCHOOLS: AVAILABILITY
OF RESOURCES
AND EXPERTISE;
DIFFERENT MODELS
OF PROVISION
A major concern for RNIB is the huge variation
across the country in educational provision for blind and partially
sighted pupils. There is variation between LEAs in terms of type
of educational placement available and in standards of educational
support provided.
The three key components that together promote
the successful inclusion of pupils who are blind and partially
sighted are:
— A coherent system of funding that
promotes the organisation of high quality central support services.
Of particular concern to RNIB is the drive towards greater delegation
of SEN funds from central LEA control direct to schools. RNIB
considers that this arrangement is inappropriate for low incidence
SEN such as sensory impairments, which require a high degree of
specialist teaching support and resources and due to economies
of scale function better under a centrally organised and funded
model.
— A national set of standards that
are universally adopted by local authorities. Despite the publication
of national Quality Standards for Education Support Services for
Children and Young People with Visual Impairment (DfES, 2002)
there is no consistent standard of specialist support across LEAs,
which suggests that the standards are not being implemented.
— The readiness of mainstream schools
to admit and take responsibility for blind and partially sighted
children, and the commitment of the LEA in promoting and supporting
this.
4. PROVISION
FOR SEN PUPILS
IN SPECIAL
SCHOOLS
A key concern with respect to provision for
blind and partially sighted pupils who are placed in special schools
other than those specifically for visually impaired children is
that a considerable proportion of these pupils do not receive
adequate specialist educational support to meet their visual impairment
needs. This may be because:
— Their visual impairment has not been
identified.
— The implications of their visual
impairment has not been recognised because of the severity of
their learning, physical and/or medical difficulties.
— There is insufficient expertise within
special schools and VI services to meet the needs of pupils with
visual impairment and additional complex difficulties.
5. RAISING STANDARDS
OF ACHIEVEMENT
FOR SEN PUPILS
— Any attempt to raise the standards
of achievement of pupils with visual impairment must first address
the issues of quality standards in terms of educational provision,
and to the design and delivery of the curriculum.
— There are concerns that the examination
system denies some visually impaired pupils the opportunity to
demonstrate their knowledge, skills and understanding properly.
6. THE SYSTEM
OF STATEMENTS
OF NEED
FOR SEN PUPILS
(THE STATEMENTING
PROCESS)
— Statements continue to provide an
essential framework for assessment and provision. Parents and
schools may see them as the only means to guaranteeing additional
provision for the child.
— There is wide variation in the quality
and clarity of statements and it is important to have a document
that clearly sets out a pupil's needs and entitlements but at
the same time is not overly prescriptive.
7. THE ROLE
OF PARENTS
IN DECISIONS
ABOUT THEIR
CHILDREN'S
EDUCATION
RNIB has some evidence that, despite there being
a range of statutory services designed to support parents such
as Parent Partnership and Dispute Resolution Services, they are
not fully utilised by parents of visually impaired children.
8. HOW SPECIAL
EDUCATIONAL NEEDS
ARE DEFINED
— The published data on SEN is by primary
need only. This approach underestimates the number of pupils with
visual impairment because it is estimated that at least half of
the population has additional disabilities and it is likely for
many pupils that the visual impairment is registered as their
secondary disability.
— Subsuming low incidence disabilities
such as visual impairment within the SEN label carries with it
the risk that policies may be driven by the needs of the majority.
9. RECOMMENDATIONS
— Delegation of SEN funding to schools
should not apply to low incidence SEN such as visual impairment.
LEA VI services should be organised and funded centrally.
— The national quality standards for
education support services for children and young people with
visual impairment should carry mandatory status.
— LEAs should play a proactive role
in supporting mainstream schools to admit and take responsibility
for blind and partially sighted pupils.
— There should be a national career
structure for teaching assistants.
— There should be a national training
standard for teaching assistants with sufficient funding made
available.
— Every blind or partially sighted
child should have a statutory entitlement to a mobility assessment
and training by a mobility officer qualified to work with children.
— There should be a range of training
opportunities for teachers working in the maintained special school
sector and available funding to enable them to meet the needs
of pupils with complex needs and/or learning difficulties.
— There should be a national strategy
for the production of curriculum materials in accessible formats.
— There should be a full review of
access arrangements in the light of the extension of the DDA to
general qualifications to ensure convergence between Key Stage
3 and Key Stage 4.
— Examination papers should be made
available in a wider range of alternative formats to reflect the
range of need of pupils with visual impairments than is currently
the case.
— There should be guidelines on the
production of statements to ensure clarity and consistency.
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