Reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils: Scotland

Schools and education authorities have had a duty to provide reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils since 2002 (originally under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (the DDA) and, from October 2010, under the Equality Act 2010). This guide will help school leaders and education authorities understand and comply with the reasonable adjustments duty. It will also help disabled pupils and
their parents understand the duty.

From 1 September 2012 the reasonable adjustments duty for schools and education authorities includes a duty to provide auxiliary aids and services for disabled pupils. The decision to commence this duty was taken by the Department for Education after a public consultation, including an event held in Scotland, with a positive response to its introduction without additional regulation from the majority of respondents.

The duty to provide auxiliary aids is not a new one and already applies in other contexts such as employment, service provision, and further and higher education. This guide will help to explain how the new requirement to include auxiliary aids and services in the duty will work in school education.

The focus of this guide is on the practical implementation of the reasonable adjustments duty in school education. It includes case studies showing how the duty can be applied in contexts which will be familiar to teachers.

The guide also gives answers to frequently asked questions about the reasonable adjustments duty.