IIP Process in Saskatoon and Regina School Divisions

Saskatchewan's 27 school divisions operate with significant autonomy. While the provincial Ministry of Education sets the framework — the Needs-Based Model, the eIIP system, the Adaptive Dimension — each division determines how to structure its student support services, what specialized programs to offer, and how resources are allocated within its schools. What that means for parents is that the IIP experience in Saskatoon is not identical to the IIP experience in Regina, even though both divisions follow the same provincial rules.

This post covers the IIP process in Saskatchewan's two largest school divisions: Saskatoon Public Schools (SPS) and Regina Public Schools (RPS). Understanding how each division has structured its supports will help you navigate the meeting, understand the programs available, and ask the right questions.

Saskatoon Public Schools: How the IIP Process Works

Saskatoon Public Schools is the largest school division in Saskatchewan. Its Student Intensive Supports department coordinates special education services across dozens of schools.

The tiered support structure: SPS uses a multi-tiered intervention model. At the classroom level, teachers apply differentiated instruction and the Adaptive Dimension. If a student requires more targeted support, the school-based team coordinates short-term intervention through targeted programs. Students whose needs exceed targeted supports are referred to SPS's Intensive Support Services, which involves division-level specialists — psychologists, behavior consultants, speech-language pathologists — and the development of a formal IIP.

How to access intensive support: The first step is working with your child's classroom teacher and school principal to document the concerns. The school is required to implement Tier 1 and Tier 2 supports before escalating to a formal intensive support referral. If those supports are being tried but are insufficient, the school team can request involvement from divisional Intensive Support Consultants.

Assessment and waitlists: SPS maintains an in-house diagnostic clinic, which is a significant advantage over many other divisions. Referrals for psychoeducational assessments, autism evaluations, speech-language assessments, and occupational therapy assessments are processed through the division, but demand is high and waitlists exist. For parents who want to accelerate the process, private assessment is an option — SPS is required to consider a private psychoeducational report in IIP development, though the school team determines how recommendations are implemented.

Specialized programs within SPS: SPS operates several specialized programs that parents should be aware of when discussing placement options:

• Autism Support Programs: Located at specific schools within the division, these programs serve students with autism spectrum disorder who require more intensive, structured support than the regular classroom with adaptations can provide. Placement in an Autism Support Program is determined by the division's placement process.

• Functional Life Skills (FLS) programs: For students with significant intellectual disabilities, these programs focus on functional academics, daily living skills, and community participation.

• John Dolan School: A specialized school for students with severe and/or multiple disabilities. Referral is through SPS's Intensive Support process and involves significant assessment and team planning.

Parents should understand that placement in any specialized program is not a permanent solution — the IIP should include goals for integration back into regular classroom settings where appropriate, and the placement should be reviewed regularly.

Working with SPS's system: SPS is a large bureaucracy, and the parent experience varies significantly by school and by the specific staff involved. Your school's Learning Resource Teacher is typically your first point of contact for IIP coordination. If you are not getting responsive service at the school level, the next escalation point is the school's principal, followed by SPS's Supervisor of Intensive Supports.

For parents requesting an assessment, putting the request in writing to the principal is more effective than a verbal request — it creates a documented record of when you asked and requires a formal response.

Regina Public Schools: How the IIP Process Works

Regina Public Schools also operates within the provincial framework but has made specific structural choices about how to deliver intensive supports.

The Intervention First model: RPS has formally adopted an "Intervention First" approach, which is aligned with the provincial Needs-Based Model but gives it a specific internal name and structure. The model emphasizes that data-driven, documented intervention must precede formal identification and IIP development. In practice, this means RPS will expect to see documented Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions before escalating to Intensive Support Services.

Intensive Support Consultation Services: RPS has a central Intensive Support Consultation Services team that includes behavior consultants, psychologists, and specialists. This team can be requested by schools when a student's needs are exceeding what the classroom teacher and in-school team can manage. The consultation process results in specific recommendations that feed into IIP development.

Specialized programs within RPS:

• Developmental Classroom (DC) Programs: For students with profound intellectual disabilities. These congregated programs provide highly specialized instruction in a small-class setting.

• Functional Integrated Academic Programs (FIAP): For students who require modification of the regular curriculum to a significant degree, but who are not yet at the FIP level. These programs integrate students into the regular school building while providing a modified curriculum.

• Early Learning Intensive Supports (ELIS): RPS's pilot program for preschool-aged children with significant developmental needs. ELIS provides intensive early intervention before Kindergarten entry, which is one of the most important early intervention resources in the province for eligible families in Regina.

• Developmental Classroom (DC) Programs (Grades 9-12): At the secondary level, RPS also maintains specialized congregated programs for students who cannot participate in the regular or modified high school curriculum.

Assistive Technology: RPS uses a formal SETT (Student, Environment, Task, Tools) process to authorize assistive technology. A SETT Request is submitted by the school team and approved by the Supervisor of Intensive Supports. If your child needs assistive technology — AAC devices, text-to-speech software, alternative keyboards — the SETT process is the route to getting it funded and formally integrated into the IIP. Technology approved through this process stays with the student within RPS as long as they remain in the division.

Working with RPS's system: Like SPS, Regina Public Schools is a large division where the parent experience varies by school and staff. The Intensive Support Consultation Services team is a division-level resource that teachers and school administrators can request — as a parent, you can ask whether this consultation has been sought for your child and what recommendations resulted.

For parents who feel their child's needs are not being addressed at the school level, RPS's formal escalation pathway goes from school principal to the division's Superintendent of Student Support Services.

What Both Divisions Have in Common

Despite their differences, Saskatoon Public Schools and Regina Public Schools share the same provincial framework and the same parent rights. In both divisions, you have the right to be an active participant in developing the IIP, receive a copy and review all assessments, refuse to sign if you disagree, and access your child's educational records through a LA FOIP request.

Both divisions are also dealing with the same urban pressure: severe EA shortages and high classroom complexity. Inclusion Saskatchewan's data shows roughly one in nine students with intensive needs facing partial or full-time exclusion provincially, and neither Saskatoon nor Regina is immune. If your child's IIP supports are not being delivered as documented — EA hours missing, specialist visits below the specified frequency — document it in writing, request a review meeting, and escalate to the division's Supervisor of Intensive Supports if the school does not respond.

Both SPS and RPS publish their student support services structures on their division websites. Reviewing that information before your child's IIP meeting lets you ask specific questions about whether particular programs or services have been considered for your child.

The Saskatchewan IEP and Support Plan Blueprint includes guidance on preparing for IIP meetings in any Saskatchewan school division — how to document your child's needs, what to ask for, and how to escalate when the school's response is insufficient.

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