Audit Scotland Additional Support for Learning Briefing
Renfrewshire Council · 18 August 2025
Back to Audit, Risk and Scrutiny Board — 18 August 2025 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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To: Audit, Risk, and Scrutiny Board On: 18 August 2025 Report by: Director of Children’s Services Heading: Audit Scotland Briefing: Additional Support for Learning 1. Summary 1.1. Audit Scotland publishes regular national reports covering matters related to local and national government. In February 2025 Audit Scotland published ‘Additional Support for Learning’. 1.2. The report summarises the status of Additional Support for Learning (ASL) in Scotland and the challenges facing the sector. The report builds on previous papers such as the Morgan Review. 1.3. The Audit Scotland report calls on the Scottish Government to make fundamental changes to how they resource and measure ASL. 2. Recommendations 2.1. It is recommended that members of the Audit, Risk, and Scrutiny Board note the content of the Audit Scotland report and the implications for ASL within Renfrewshire Council. 3. Background 3.1. The number of pupils recorded as having additional support needs has increased by 768% since the introduction of the Additional Support for Learning (ASL) Scotland Act in 2004. As of 2024, 40% of pupils in schools receive ASL. The report suggests that an improved awareness of ASL and the long-term impact of the Covid-19 pandemic may have contributed to this increase. 3.2. The Audit Scotland report states that the significant rise in children and young people receiving ASL is in part due to the Scottish Government adopting a wider, more inclusive definition of additional support needs which include:
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- Children requiring any provisions that are considered different from what would be received by the majority of children. - Those receiving temporary support. - For many categories there does not need to be a formal diagnosis. - All children and young people who have been looked after are presumed to require additional support unless determined otherwise. ASL- Data Framework 3.3. Audit Scotland highlights that there are likely to be gaps in understanding the scale and nature of the ASL figures due to inconsistent record keeping between councils and limitations arising from the SEEMiS reporting system. The Scottish Government aims to develop a new system for recording ASL data by 2028. As an interim measure, Renfrewshire Council has issued guidance on the recording of additional support needs related to the Staged Intervention Framework. 3.4. The report acknowledges that there are wider barriers to children accessing additional support, such as children waiting on an appointment for diagnosis. In August 2024, a CAMHS Education Advisor was appointed as a single point of contact to address this issue locally. 3.5. Audit Scotland states that while the current data framework highlights some groups who make up a greater proportion of ASL children and young people, it does not provide enough detail to comprehensively plan for ASL provision. 3.6. According to the report, key statistics relating to ASL are: - Boys are 22% more likely to receive ASL than girls. - 46% of children from the most deprived areas have ASL compared to 27% of children from the least deprived areas. - Secondary school children are more likely to have ASL than primary school students. However, Audit Scotland suggest that this could be due to additional needs becoming more prominent with age. In Renfrewshire, 40% of secondary pupils are recorded as having additional support needs, compared with 29% in primary. 3.7. The report identifies that children with ASL have a significantly lower attainment outcomes than those without, with there being a 20-percentage point gap in those achieving the expected Curriculum for Excellence level. In Renfrewshire, the size of the primary gap in literacy was 31-percentage points and in 23-percentage points in numeracy.
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3.8. Audit Scotland advocates for greater progress in the creation of a new framework for measuring the attainment of children with ASL to ensure that they can fully develop to their full potential. This is a move that has received significant support from Inclusion Ambassadors, secondary school aged children with additional support needs. The report highlights that there has been insufficient progress in addressing the challenges raised by the Morgan Review in 2020. ASL - Resources 3.9. Audit Scotland criticises the Scottish Government for not planning for the potential impact of the more inclusive definition for ASL. The report says that this can reflected in the lack of resources and training available to schools. 3.10. The report highlights that while the Scottish Government has provided funding for ASL through both the general resource grant and various specialist grants, the funding has not been able to keep up with the increased demand. 3.11. Audit Scotland highlights the increased use of Additional Support Needs Tribunals since the Covid-19 pandemic as an example of pressures on councils. While the tribunals are intended as the final recourse for parents to dispute a decision not to allow a placing request, the legislation does not specify that other routes need to be pursued first. This has resulted in parents applying to tribunals as the first recourse which has a significant financial and resource costs to councils. The report calls for better communication with parents to direct them towards other routes for resolution. In order to improve communication, Renfrewshire has trained both in- house and independent mediators. 3.12. While figures show that councils spend on average 12% of their education budget on ASL, Audit Scotland believes this figure under-estimates the amount spent. This discrepancy is due to most ASL provision being provided within mainstream settings where resources are not recorded separately. The reported figures also do not include any council funding that is outwith the education budget, e.g. social work funding. 3.13. Audit Scotland’s own research into funding and found that councils spent an average of over 50% of ASL funding on staffing, with a further 14% being spent on additional support schools or enhanced provision units within mainstream schools. During 2024-25, Renfrewshire Council spent 74.51% on ASL staffing, including units within mainstream schools with a further 5.65% on ASN schools. 3.14. According to Audit Scotland’s research, classroom teachers provide the majority of ASL within schools, with support from teachers increasing by 347% since 2019.
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However, the report cautions that this increase may be the result of improved record keeping rather than a real terms increase in support. Within Renfrewshire a Staged Intervention Framework has been implemented to ensure the most appropriate support is applied at the right time with a relentless focus on early intervention. 4. Key Messages 4.1. Audit Scotland encourages the Scottish Government and the ASL Project Board to implement a new national data framework for recording ASL provision across all Local Authorities. 4.2. The report argues that through improving its understanding of ASL demand, the Scottish Government would be in better position to understand how to comprehensively resource the ASL needs of children and young people. 4.3. Audit Scotland advocates for a new framework for measuring attainment outcomes to ensure that all children’s needs are met. 4.4. Audit Scotland suggests that there may need to be a fundamental change to how ASL is funded to ensure that teachers and specialist staff are appropriately supported to provide ASL. 4.5. Audit Scotland highlights that since the UNCRC (Scotland) Act was adopted into Scots law in July 2024, there is a greater statutory duty for public organisations to ensure that children’s needs are met. 5. Implications of the Report 1. Financial – While Renfrewshire is not directly mentioned in the report reference is made to the need to reform local authority funding for additional support for learning. 2. HR & Organisational Development – While not directly mentioned in the report, Audit Scotland do highlight the need for more support for staff providing ASL. 3. Community/Council Planning – None 4. Legal - None 5. Property/Assets – None 6. Information Technology – None 7. Equality & Human Rights – None: an equality impact assessment is not required for this report as it is a summary of a national report for noting only. 8. Health & Safety – None 9. Procurement – None 10. Risk – None 11. Privacy Impact – None 12. Climate Risk – None
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13. Children’s Rights – While not directly mentioned in the report reference is made to the UNCRC and the additional responsibilities it places on councils. 14. Cosla Policy Position – None List of Background Papers Audit Scotland report: Additional Support for Learning Inclusion Update to Education and Children’s Services Policy Board 15 May 2025 Author: Andrew Voysey, Assistant Policy Officer, andrew.voysey@renfrewshire.gov.uk