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Plenary, 28 Feb 2002

28 Feb 2002 · S1 · Plenary

Item of business

Education (Disability Strategies and Pupils' Records) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Baillie, Jackie Lab Dumbarton Watch on SPTV

My colleagues in the Labour party and I have long held the belief that education is the key to unlocking opportunity in later life. It is not the privilege of the few but a fundamental and basic right for all our children and young people. Access to schools and to the school curriculum is critical if disabled children and young people are to be helped to reach their full potential.

The bill brings all those key principles together. It builds on the recommendations of the disability rights task force and at long last rectifies the glaring omission in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, which specifically exempted education from its provisions.

The central element of the bill is the duty it places on all education authorities, grant-aided schools and independent schools to produce and implement an accessibility strategy. Such strategies are to do with improving access for all disabled pupils not only to the school building but, of equal importance, to the school curriculum. We need to remember that, for many children with a learning disability or a sensory impairment, accessibility does not stop at the provision of physical access. Indeed, during the consultation at stage 1, concerns were expressed by the committee that using terms such as "in writing" might be too narrowly interpreted and would exclude alternative formats such as Braille. I am therefore particularly pleased and reassured by the minister's response that an amendment will be lodged by the Executive at stage 2 to ensure that the bill will be truly inclusive and that the possibility of any misinterpretation will be avoided.

If we are to achieve the step change that we want in the experience of disabled children in their school years, it is essential that we have in place a robust mechanism of monitoring and evaluation. Accessibility strategies will only ever be as good as their implementation. We need to ensure that they are living, breathing documents rather than ones that simply gather dust on a shelf. One way to do that is to make an explicit linkage with schools' objectives for improvement and development plans and children's services plans. With HMIE routinely evaluating the quality of strategies and monitoring their implementation, I believe that we will see a difference. I ask ministers to consider that again before stage 2.

Another issue that I ask ministers to reflect on before stage 2 is the view that we need some form of appeals mechanism when an accessibility strategy fails to meet somebody's expectations or fails to address reasonable needs. I hasten to say that I am not attracted to a cumbersome and overly bureaucratic system, but I ask ministers to consider independent mediation, which has been used successfully in other areas and provides a swift and effective response in the interests of the child.

In conclusion, the principles of the bill have been warmly welcomed by the Education, Culture and Sport Committee and by a variety of statutory and voluntary organisations that have experience and interest in the sector. Much more important, the bill will be welcomed by parents and children as a critical step in ensuring equality in education. It provides the opportunity to help to unlock the potential in every child, irrespective of ability.

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Plenary, 28 Feb 2002

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