Additional Learning Needs Wales: What ALN Actually Means Under Welsh Law

Your child is struggling in school, and someone has just told you they might have "ALN." Or maybe you moved from England and keep hearing the school say "ALN" and "IDP" when you were expecting "SEN" and "EHCP." Either way, you are not in a familiar system anymore. Wales operates under a completely separate legal framework — one that replaced the old SEN system in 2021 and still catches many parents off-guard.

This guide explains exactly what Additional Learning Needs means in Wales, what counts as Additional Learning Provision, and what the statistics tell us about how the system is working on the ground.

What Is the Legal Definition of ALN in Wales?

Under Section 2 of the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018 (ALNET Act), a child or young person has Additional Learning Needs (ALN) if they have a learning difficulty or disability that calls for Additional Learning Provision (ALP).

That two-part test matters enormously:

Part 1 — A learning difficulty or disability. The child must have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than most peers of the same age, or a disability (as defined by the Equality Act 2010) that prevents or hinders them from accessing education.

Part 2 — It must call for Additional Learning Provision. This is where many families get tripped up. A diagnosis, a struggle, or even a formal assessment does not automatically create ALN. The learning difficulty must require provision that is additional to, or different from, what is made generally available to other children of the same age in a mainstream setting.

The ALN Code calls that mainstream baseline "ordinarily available inclusive practice" — essentially, normal differentiated classroom teaching. If the school's regular strategies are enough to meet the child's needs, they do not meet the ALN threshold, even if the child genuinely finds school hard.

This strict definition is why thousands of children who previously had SEN support under "School Action" or "School Action Plus" have been removed from registers entirely since 2021.

How Is ALN Different from the Old SEN System?

The old Welsh SEN system used the same terminology as England: Special Educational Needs, Statements of SEN, School Action, School Action Plus, and SENCO. All of that is gone.

The current Welsh framework uses:

• ALN (Additional Learning Needs) — replaces SEN
• ALP (Additional Learning Provision) — replaces Special Educational Provision
• IDP (Individual Development Plan) — replaces Statements of SEN, IEPs, and School Action Plus
• ALNCo (ALN Co-ordinator) — replaces SENCO
• Education Tribunal for Wales (ETW) — replaces SENTW

If you are using the old Welsh terms or, worse, English terms like EHCP, the school administration will immediately recognise that you are not familiar with Welsh law. That weakens your position before you have said anything substantive.

What Does "Additional Learning Provision" Actually Mean?

ALP is defined under Section 3 of the ALNET Act as educational or training provision that is additional to, or different from, that made generally available for others of the same age in mainstream settings.

Practical examples of what counts as ALP:

• A dedicated 1:1 teaching assistant for specific, timed sessions
• Direct speech and language therapy provided by a qualified therapist
• Specialist dyslexia teaching using a structured literacy programme
• Sensory integration sessions with an occupational therapist
• Small group intervention for phonics that goes beyond the normal class programme

What does not count as ALP, and therefore does not give a right to an IDP:

• Differentiated worksheets at the lower end of the class range
• A teacher sitting with a child for a few minutes during independent work
• Generic movement breaks for restlessness
• Buddy systems or pastoral check-ins

The line between the two is exactly where most disputes happen.

The Statistics: What Is Actually Happening in Welsh Schools?

The data from the January 2025 school census reveals a system in structural tension. There were 43,885 pupils identified with ALN or SEN in maintained schools, representing 9.5% of the total pupil population — down from 52,152 pupils (11.2%) in January 2024.

That shrinking total sounds reassuring until you look at the statutory caseload. In January 2025, 32,127 pupils held Individual Development Plans, accounting for 73.2% of all formally recognised ALN pupils. In January 2024, only 40.9% held IDPs. The number of children with statutory protection has roughly doubled in proportional terms in one year.

Audit Wales put this paradox in starkest relief: between 2018/19 and 2024/25, the total number of school learners recorded as having ALN or SEN fell by 58%. Over the same period, the number requiring statutory support through Statements or IDPs increased by 164%.

What this tells parents: the new ALN definition has pushed a large number of children off the register entirely — often children who had School Action support and whose needs are now being absorbed back into classroom differentiation. The children who remain on the register are being protected by statutory IDPs at a higher rate than ever. If your child genuinely needs provision beyond what ordinary classroom teaching can offer, securing a statutory IDP matters more now, not less.

Why Does Wales Not Follow the English SEND System?

Wales devolved education policy and created a distinct legal framework under the ALNET Act 2018. England operates under the Children and Families Act 2014. The two frameworks are entirely separate legal jurisdictions.

An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) has no legal standing in Wales. An English SENCO qualification does not automatically translate to an ALNCo role. If you move from England to Wales, your child's EHCP does not convert automatically — the Welsh school must treat the arrival as a fresh referral and go through Welsh statutory processes from scratch.

This matters because the internet is overwhelmingly dominated by English SEN content. If you search for help with your child's needs and find advice about EHCPs, SENCO referrals, or the SEND Tribunal, that advice does not apply in Wales. Using English legal terminology with a Welsh ALNCo signals you do not know the system, which can make it easier for schools to deflect your requests.

How to Request an ALN Assessment

When you believe your child needs an IDP, a verbal conversation with the class teacher is not enough. You need to write to the headteacher or ALNCo and invoke the school's statutory duty to decide under Section 11 of the ALNET Act.

Your letter should state clearly that you believe your child's learning difficulties call for Additional Learning Provision beyond ordinarily available inclusive practice, and that you are formally requesting the school to exercise its duty to decide under Section 11. The school must acknowledge the request within 15 school days and, if they agree ALN exists, must prepare and issue the IDP within 35 school days.

The Wales IDP & ALN Blueprint at specialedstartguide.com/uk/wales/iep-guide/ includes the exact template letter language to use, along with a checklist of what a legally sound IDP must contain.

What Happens If the School Refuses?

If the school issues a "No ALN Notice" — deciding that your child's needs can be met through ordinary classroom teaching — you do not accept that decision as final. You write to the Local Authority requesting them to reconsider the school's decision. The LA has 7 weeks to review the evidence. If the LA upholds the refusal, you can appeal to the Education Tribunal for Wales.

The system is set up to resolve disputes before reaching Tribunal, but families need to know each step and its deadline to navigate it effectively. Informal conversations and polite emails without statutory references do not start any legal clock. Only formal written requests invoking the correct statutory duties create the timelines schools and local authorities must meet.

Summary: The Four Things to Know About ALN Wales

1. ALN is a two-part legal test — a learning difficulty plus a need for provision beyond the classroom norm. Diagnosis alone does not guarantee ALN status.
2. The old SEN system — School Action, statements, SENCO, IEPs — is legally obsolete in Wales. Using that language weakens your position.
3. The new system has a higher statutory protection rate than the old system for children who do qualify, but a tighter gateway. If your child qualifies, an IDP is more powerful than a Statement ever was.
4. All requests for ALN assessment should be made in writing, citing Section 11 of the ALNET Act, to start the statutory clock running.

Understanding the legal framework is the first step. Knowing exactly how to use it — what to write, when to escalate, and how to audit what the school has actually committed to — is what turns the framework into real support for your child.

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