AQW 26599/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 06/05/2025
Answered On Date: 19/05/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education to outline how he will ensure that the designation of a school as Specialist Provision in Mainstream Schools appropriately reflects the needs of pupils.

Answer:

The Education Authority has advised that:

The Framework for Specialist Provision in Mainstream Schools sets out criteria and indicators to identify mainstream schools in which to establish additional specialist provision classes to help meet the needs of children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) within their local community.

Every child in a specialist provision class has a Statement of Special Educational Needs, and the monitoring and evaluation of outcomes for these children is achieved primarily through the review process of their Statement, and the tracking of progress against the targets on their Individual Education Plan (IEP) or expected outcomes on their Personal Learning Plan (PLP). Where a change of place is recommended as part of the annual process the Education Authority will review the placement in line with the individual needs of pupils to enable them to reach their full potential.