Survey of the Effectiveness of the S139 Learning Difficulty Assessment

Executive Summary

In May and June 2011 Y-gen conducted a brief survey on the impact of the S139 Learning Difficulty Assessment (LDA).  A total of 11 respondents were interviewed from post-16 providers in Enfield, Haringey, Barnet, Brent, Hackney and Hertfordshire.  Y-gen recognises the limitation of the sample size and the results presented here should only be regarded as a snap-shot of what a broader study might generate. 

Experiences of the S139 Learning Difficulty Assessment vary among post 16 providers with regard to the role the assessment process plays in allocating support for the learners with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).  Generally, providers consider the S139 LDA to be a helpful document for facilitating the transition process, however, limitations are inevitably exposed when the assessment is not thoroughly completed.  Several themes have emerged from the survey. 

Quality

"The S139 LDA should be the only document we need."  However, this depends on the quality of the assessment. 

Assessments are useful when they are of high quality.  "If the forms are completed thoroughly they are very useful as they form a really good view of what the student's needs are and if the family is aware and supportive of their learning needs."  Assessment reports need to be clear and accurate. 

The S139 LDA needs to be person centred and include evidence to back up the recommendation.  "Whoever is conducting the assessment will work closely with the young person, their parents and/or carers and other professionals (...) to ensure the assessment (...) is evidence based and valid." 

Specific information should be included on educational and skills attainment.  "They could benefit from being more detailed and specific, perhaps citing the sources of the information (and with) precise exam grades."  Any relevant documents must be referenced and attached. 

"It is good to have (a range of) useful contacts."  The contact listing needs to be comprehensive. 

Local authorities should facilitate ‘robust quality assurance systems, which include line management sign-off and checking compliance on a regular basis'.  Issues of consistency and quality may be caused by time restrictions, lack of training and the approach of individual assessors rather than simply the LA.  Investment in training and working smarter will improve quality. 

Consistency over time is an important element in ensuring quality, provided the assessment remains independent and impartial.  "The boroughs where the adviser stays with the learner from Year 9 are much more valuable than the ones that go to a one-stop shop, meet someone and fill in the form."

Person Centred and Holistic

The S139 LDA must be an original and contemporary assessment.  "We found that the information on the moving on plans was simply a cut and paste job from the SEN Statements and psychological reports."

The S139 LDA must be a bespoke piece of work focussing on the individual's needs - a person centred assessment.  "There are some S139 LDAs that someone obviously does in a block and they'll have other people's names on where they have cut and pasted things on from other reports and assessments." 

The notion of learner input and ownership is paramount in conducting the S139 LDA, however, quotes and aspirations need to be managed sensitively.  "It is very evident when they actually do know the individual as opposed to when they are just doing it because it is their job." 

Knowing about leisure and recreational interests is important.  "The importance of knowing if the learner belongs to any youth clubs." 

 "I would like to see some accessible versions that are accessible to learners, interactive versions online ... templates that can be adapted ... video." 

Practical and Realistic

Any information drawn from other reports, assessments or reviews must be translated into something useful that the learning provider can draw on when allocating and planning support within their own setting. 

The educational jargon and technical phrases common in the statement of SEN and other specialist reports should be translated into useable information in the S139 LDA.  "We need to know how to translate the assessment into real teaching, learning and support strategies that can benefit the individual in the classroom."

Respondents emphasised the need for the S139 LDA to be written in simple language so that parents and others outside the educational sector can understand them.  "It is very important to make them (parents and learners) understand these papers as they are quite important documents to secure support needs, exam access and to show progression that has taken place since the statement." 

The S139 LDA should include details on strategies that have worked in previous learning provision.  "S139 LDAs don't have enough information on what the student needs in terms of support.  They do not tell me what the student needs which is different to other students."

The S139 LDA should provide details of any support necessary such as sensory aids, aids to assist movement or manipulation, staff ratios, level of supervision needed, specific professional support required, for example, nursing or physiotherapy.  "Sometimes it is not clear what the learning difficulty is." 

S139 LDAs need to be aspirational yet realistic at the same time.  "I had one that said that the young person wanted to be a veterinarian but then later on went on to say that they were allergic to animals." 

Purpose

There seemed to be a lack of understanding of the purpose of the S139 LDA which translated into a lack of confidence in some poorer quality assessments.  The purpose of the S139 LDA is to independently identify the best local options to meet the young person's needs and make a recommendation so that the local authority can ensure that it is commissioning the right type of learning provision for its young people. 

The S139 LDA is designed to update, add to and build on previous assessments and interventions taking account of changing needs and circumstances.  Any specialist support needs should be identified.  The process of conducting the S139 LDA must be based on a multi-agency approach. 

It is wholly appropriate for each learning provider to conduct its' own internal assessment of suitability as an assessment of learner capabilities in a new setting.  However, the local authority cannot afford to be totally dependent on a local learning provider's assessment when it is paying for the student placement and there are potentially a range of providers who could supply that place, all providing a different quality of learning environment in different settings for different client groups.  

The S139 LDA and its attachments are often insufficient as the only source of information in the process of planning support for learners.  This is due to the lack of information in the documents and results in all providers doing thorough in-house assessments and contacting other agencies for detailed information.  "We always do our assessment regardless of the S139 LDA." 

All providers do their in-house assessments regardless of the contents and quality of the S139 LDA.  This is mainly to establish levels of literacy, numeracy, mobility, learning behaviour, barriers to learning, attention, participation, communication and general educational levels as well as social competencies and interests.  The main purpose of the in-house assessments is to facilitate the allocation of appropriate support as well as being able to place the student on the most suitable course. 

Learning provider assessments are carried out with various toolkits and also include testing of tools and supporting equipment.  Some providers offer tasters where the learner can be observed in the actual environment as part of this process and others include assessments by educational psychologists and other professionals. 

Progression

"Once the student comes here into the college there is no further liaison with the adviser and no further follow up." This indicates a lack of follow up once the student is enrolled and settled in the new provision and contradicts the guidelines that review strategies represent good practice and should be planned by the LA and the assessors.  Young people in receipt of a S139 LDA should be followed up at least every two years up to his/her 25^th birthday. 

None of the respondents updated the S139 LDA and in the case of the learner developing new skills or their support needs changing, the respondents would update their own assessment to reflect this without contacting the assessor.  Three respondents mentioned that they were unclear as to where the responsibility for reviewing the S139 LDA lies. 

Most advisers or assessors ceased to be in contact with the student, something which highlights limitations in the notion of supporting the learner until the age of 25.  "I do not recall receiving any calls from an adviser to see how the student is doing."

In the case of a learner moving course or progressing to another provision, the information from the current provider would only follow if the destination provision asks for any information.  The provider would in that case share their in-house assessment and any other information gathered on the learner, including S139 LDA.  Most respondents, however, suggested that this is generally the exception as they are rarely asked to provide such information. 

"Nobody has ever asked for one, we do progress quite a lot of people to college.  As far as I am aware, they never get updated again and they don't necessarily go with them."  "When they pass on from here, we keep the information for five years and only pass it on when someone asks for it.  There is not any mechanism in place for this."