07/04/2025
Easter holidays mean revision for some and anticipation of 11+/13+ school selection tests in September for others.
A common question at this time of year is,
Are children and young people with additional learning needs, diagnosed conditions including ADHD and Autism, disabilities, illness, injuries or special educational needs (SEN) entitled to be provided with access arrangements and or reasonable adjustments for their exams or other assessments?
The answer is that, yes, if they have a known learning difficulty or disability that puts them at a disadvantage compared with their non-disabled or neurotypical peers / typically able peers their school, college, tuition centre, tutoring provider or university, should consider providing up to 25% extra time, a separate room to minimise distractions, a prompter to remind to stay on task, rest / movement breaks as needed to mitigate difficulties sitting still for extended periods, (acknowledging for example a need for movement or rest to regulate and maintain engagement and focus, mental and physical fatigue etc.) a reader to ensure they don’t miss instructions, a scribe to record their answers for them or use of a computer, tablet, assistive assistive augmentative communication eg. Speech to text software or device, coloured overlays, ear defenders etc. or whatever other equipment or reasonable adjustment eg comfy clothes instead of school uniform as access arrangements/reasonable adjustments.
This is especially important if dyslexia, dyspraxia, dysgraphia or dyscalculia are diagnosed or identified as present, and or any conditions affecting written output (ability to communicate or record answers, ideas, thoughts, in written form) eg. Hypermobility, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, other conditions affecting connective tissue joint instability, laxity, or pain eg. Juvenile rhematoid arthritis.
Access arrangements and reasonable adjustments (extra time, separate room, reader, scribe, rest and movement breaks, a computer/laptop/tablet and or any other assistive technology device, overlays, ear defenders etc.) need to be their normal way of working in class and ideally are specified in a professional report eg. Paediatrician, Educational Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech and Language Therapist, Dyslexia Specialist Teacher with post a graduate qualification or assessing specialist teacher.
A DASH handwriting speed assessment can be carried out for example, by a specialist teacher for example to identify difficulties and delays with getting answers down onto the page so if you, your child or young person has these sorts of difficulties whether diagnosed or not, hasn’t been assessed recently it’s worth considering asking school to arrange for an assessment to be done for current, up to date evidence of the need for extra time in exams and any assessed work.
Additionally medical evidence of any conditions, illness or injuries causing pain or affecting attention, ability to demonstrate true intellectual ability is useful to support the need for extra time, rest or movement breaks, a separate quiet room or other accommodations eg. Wobble cushions, bed to rest on if physically unwell, access to fidget toys or sensory stimulation items etc.
If you haven’t already now is a great time to look through any diagnostic reports for recommendations of any specific access needs identified and consider requesting any further assessments you think may be necessary from eg. from Integrated Children’s Therapies - GP can refer. If school or college have overlooked this it’s not to late to raise this with both the school leadership and JCQ (the organisation that co-ordinates access arrangements and reasonable adjustments for public exams).
Getting everything in place now will also really help a student in their secondary school, college, university, job or future career.
I hope that’s helpful.
If you’d like to book a consultation for further advice and guidance about what to ask for and how to get the right evidence in place do reach out. X
