ALN Support in Welsh Schools for Autism, ADHD, and Dyslexia

The three most common reasons parents in Wales find themselves fighting for an IDP are autism, ADHD, and dyslexia. These conditions share a common problem in the Welsh ALN system: they are frequently used as justifications for refusing statutory support. Schools argue that a child with these conditions can have their needs met through classroom adjustments — "ordinarily available inclusive practice" — without the legal protection of an IDP.

Sometimes that is genuinely true. Often it is not. Knowing what appropriate provision for each condition looks like under Welsh law, and knowing the arguments schools use to deny it, gives you the ability to push back effectively.

Autism Support in Welsh Schools

What Good ALP for Autism Looks Like

Autism affects children in widely different ways, but the Welsh ALN system does not assess "autism" — it assesses the barriers to learning and education that a specific child's autism creates, and whether addressing those barriers requires provision beyond the classroom norm.

Evidence-based ALP for autistic children commonly includes:

• Structured social communication groups (e.g., Social Stories, Lego therapy, SCERTS)
• 1:1 CAMHS support for anxiety management where school attendance or functioning is significantly affected
• Sensory integration support from an Occupational Therapist, particularly where sensory processing difficulties interfere with learning
• Speech and Language Therapy targeting pragmatic and social communication, not just speech production
• TA support structured around specific transition points in the day (arrival, lesson changes, unstructured times like break and lunch)
• Reduced timetable arrangements if full-day attendance creates distress that prevents any learning from occurring
• Environmental modifications documented in the IDP — specific classroom seating, permission to use equipment, sensory breaks

All of this must be in Section 2B in specified and quantified terms. "Support during unstructured times" is not ALP. "Daily 1:1 TA presence during break and lunchtime, with structured activity facilitation for 15 minutes at the start of each unstructured period" is ALP.

The Diagnosis Myth for Autism

A critical piece of intelligence for Welsh parents: you do not need a formal autism diagnosis to receive an IDP. The legal threshold is whether your child's needs require provision beyond the classroom norm. If a child demonstrates significant difficulty with social communication, sensory processing, and transitions — regardless of whether they have a formal diagnosis — those observed needs can form the basis of an ALN assessment.

Schools that tell parents "we can't do anything until you have a diagnosis" are factually wrong. The NHS neurodevelopmental assessment waiting lists in Wales are notoriously long, sometimes multi-year. A child cannot be denied statutory support for years simply because the NHS assessment queue has not reached them yet.

NAS Cymru and Specialist Support

The National Autistic Society Cymru (NAS Cymru) provides Wales-specific guidance on education rights for autistic children. They can advise on what support is considered best practice, what schools should be offering without an IDP, and how to escalate when provision is inadequate. They are a useful evidence source when you are arguing for specific provision in Section 2B.

ADHD Support in Welsh Schools

What Good ALP for ADHD Looks Like

ADHD presents two major barriers in the school context: difficulties with sustained attention and executive function (particularly in children with the predominantly inattentive presentation), and difficulties with impulse control and hyperactivity that can lead to disruptive classroom behaviour and punitive responses.

Evidence-based ALP for ADHD commonly includes:

• Small group or 1:1 literacy and numeracy intervention for children whose ADHD has caused significant academic gaps
• Coaching support for executive function — breaking tasks into steps, using checklists, explicit planning structures
• Structured movement breaks at regular intervals, not reactive "when the child seems dysregulated"
• Environmental modifications — preferential seating, minimised distractions — documented in the IDP so they are consistently applied across all lessons and teachers
• TA support during independent work periods to support task initiation and maintenance
• Behaviour management strategies that are therapeutic rather than punitive — formal restorative approaches or de-escalation scripts, not exclusions

The challenge with ADHD specifically is that schools often provide low-level environmental modifications and classify them as sufficient. Preferential seating and a fidget toy are not ALP. They are reasonable classroom adjustments that most schools should be making for any child who needs them. If your child needs those adjustments, they should still be in the IDP as documented commitments — but they are not the totality of ALP for a child with significant ADHD.

ADHD and the "Ordinarily Available" Trap

Schools frequently argue that ADHD support falls within "ordinarily available inclusive practice." This argument collapses when you examine what is actually available to the child. If the school cannot demonstrate that every teacher your child encounters has training in ADHD support strategies, that those strategies are being consistently applied, and that your child is making progress as a result — the "ordinarily available" argument fails.

Ask the school for evidence: what ADHD-specific training do your teachers have? What progress data shows the strategies are working? What adjustment has the school made specifically for your child? If the answers are vague, you have grounds to argue that effective support for your child's ADHD requires ALP that goes beyond what is ordinarily available.

Dyslexia Support in Welsh Schools

What Good ALP for Dyslexia Looks Like

Dyslexia is an area where Welsh schools' approaches vary enormously in quality. Strong ALN practice for dyslexia involves structured literacy intervention — programmes such as Read Write Inc., Precision Teaching, or specific phonics-based interventions delivered by a trained practitioner. Generic "extra reading" or "having the TA sit with the child" is not sufficient.

Evidence-based ALP for dyslexia commonly includes:

• Structured literacy intervention using a recognised evidence-based programme, delivered in 1:1 or very small group format at least three times per week
• Assistive technology access — text-to-speech software, speech-to-text tools, coloured overlays — documented in the IDP so all teachers apply them consistently
• Scribe or reader provision for formal assessments
• Extended time allowances for assessed tasks
• Explicit spelling and writing strategies built into the curriculum, not just during intervention time

Dyslexia Wales is an organisation that provides Wales-specific guidance on best practice for dyslexia support and assessment. Their resources can help you identify what provision is appropriate and what language to use when requesting it.

The Assessment Question

A formal dyslexia assessment by a qualified practitioner — typically a specialist teacher with an Assessment Practising Certificate, or an educational psychologist — provides the most compelling evidence for ALP requests. If the school has not referred your child for this assessment, you can request it formally. If you commission an independent assessment, the report must be considered during IDP preparation.

A key thing to know: dyslexia assessments vary in quality. An assessment that simply confirms dyslexia without specifying the child's reading age, processing speed, phonological awareness profile, and recommended interventions is much less useful than one that provides precise recommendations for Section 2B.

General Points for All Three Conditions

Condition-specific organisations provide crucial evidence. NAS Cymru, ADHD-specific charities, and Dyslexia Wales all publish evidence-based guidance on what support children with these conditions need. Citing that guidance in your IDP meeting gives your requests an evidence base that goes beyond personal advocacy.

All three conditions often coexist. ADHD and dyslexia frequently appear together. Autism often co-occurs with sensory processing difficulties, anxiety, and communication challenges that go beyond any single diagnostic label. The IDP should address your child's actual profile, not just fit provision into a single category.

The IDP must name who delivers provision. A provision that can be delivered by "any TA" is weaker than one that specifies "a TA trained in [specific programme]" or "under the supervision of an HCPC-registered SaLT." Push for qualifications to be specified in Section 2B.

The Wales IDP & ALN Blueprint includes provision checklists for autism, ADHD, and dyslexia that you can bring directly to IDP meetings as the basis for your Section 2B requests.

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