The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 or ASL Act, says that local authorities must have a way of identifying which pupils in their area need additional support and identify the particular needs of those pupils. They must also publish information about arrangements they make for identifying which pupils need extra help. You can find this info on your local authority’s website.

The law also says that, as a parent or carer, you have the right to ask for an assessment of your child’s needs. If your child is aged 12 or over, they may also be able to ask for an assessment themselves..

Teachers and support staff will regularly assess your child’s learning. They will identify areas where your child is struggling through their own observations and things like the results of any class tests.

Under the ASL Act, when assessing your child’s needs, the school, nursery or local authority must ask for your and your child’s views. They must take your views and any information you provide about your child into account when they are deciding what your child’s needs are.

For many children, this will be enough information for school staff to work out what support your child needs. They can then arrange this support for them and keep it under review to make sure it’s working for them.

Sometimes, further assessment might be needed to help to work out why your child is struggling. If the school/nursery thinks your child needs a specific assessment of their needs, they should discuss this with you before making any referrals. This could be an assessment for a specific learning need such as dyslexia or autism. Some assessments involve other professionals, like educational psychologists or health professionals.

Advice for parents /

Who’s who: who is the professional supporting my child?

Your child might have many different people involved in their support and care. Find out more about the roles of those staff here.

It’s best to start by talking with your child’s class teacher (if they’re in primary school) or guidance teacher (if they’re at secondary school). The school may already be aware of your child’s needs and be providing support. If not, you can ask them about the options available for assessing your child’s needs, so they can get the right support in place.

If you think your child has an additional support need, you can read further details on our page Understanding additional support needs for further information and national organisations that can provide support to your child and family.

If you believe that your child requires support because they are a highly able pupil, Scottish Network for Able Pupils (SNAP) has resources and guidance for parents when approaching or talking to your child’s school.

Advice for parents /

How support is planned

A useful summary of how schools and local authorities plan children’s learning and support.

Advice for parents /

Getting the most from meetings

Meetings with your child’s school are a good way to hear about how your child is doing at school. Read on for helpful tips about how you can help to make meetings with your child’s school a positive experience.

If you would like your child’s needs to be formally assessed, it can be helpful to put your request in writing. You can send it to the person responsible for additional support for learning in your child’s school (often a deputy head or principal teacher). You could also ask about assessment at a planning meeting. Your child’s school should involve you in decisions about assessments and in planning your child’s support.

If your child’s school or nursery does not agree assessment is needed, you can write to your local authority to ask them to assess your child.

You can ask for a general assessment of your child’s needs, or a specific assessment, such as an educational, medical, or psychological assessment. You should give the reasons why you think the assessment is needed. See the dropdown below on ‘What should be included in a formal request for an assessment?’ for a full suggested list of points to include.

Your local authority can refuse your request if they feel it is unreasonable. If they do, they must tell you why. If you are unhappy with this decision, you have the right to request mediation. You could also request independent adjudication You can visit our pages Solving problems with your child’s school and More formal routes for resolving disagreements for more information on these steps.

If your child is aged 12 or over, they can ask for an assessment themselves as explained below:

Advice for parents /

Involving your child in decisions

Find out about your child’s right to be involved and share their views in decisions about their additional support for learning.

If you want to make a formal request to your local authority to assess your child’s needs, we’d suggest you should include:

Depending on your child’s situation you may want to also include:

Find the contact details for your local authority here: Local authority additional support for learning contacts.

What the assessment will look like depends on your child’s needs. Some assessments can be done by staff at your child’s school or nursery. For example, a support for learning teacher may be able to do dyslexia assessments. Sometimes, other professionals may need to carry out the assessment. This could be an educational psychologist, a health professional, or a social worker.

Assessment can include:

No matter what type of assessment your child has, your views and your child’s views should always be considered.

Your child does not need a diagnosis to be entitled to support. Schools must provide support to all children and young people who need it, for whatever reason. Depending on their needs, a formal diagnosis might help to understand what kind of support might help your child, but it does not change their legal rights. This means that if your child is on the waiting list for an assessment, they still have the right to support in the meantime.

Many pupils will also need support for reasons that do not come with a diagnosis, for example if they are being bullied, caring for someone at home, or if they’ve been bereaved.

No matter the reason why a pupil needs support, they have the same rights to receive help at school.

Advice for parents /

What the law says about additional support for learning

Every child may need extra help with their learning at some point in their lives. Read on to find more about additional support for learning in Scotland.

Schools, nurseries and local authorities should take account of any information you, your child, or other agencies involved with your child can provide.

They do not have a duty to carry out the recommendations from private assessments. However, they should consider the information they can provide when planning your child’s support.

It’s always best to talk to the school before arranging private assessments. It’s also important to remember that you have the right to formally request assessments from your local authority. So if you feel an assessment is needed but it isn’t happening through the school, you could try asking the local authority first before paying for assessments yourself.