Why Assessment?

What are the benefits of assessment?

If you have concerns about a child/young person and their learning, an assessment can provide clarity as to why and where they may be struggling.

• For parents and guardians, a report can give you more understanding, and therefore more confidence in how best to support your child at home.

• For schools and colleges it will provide tailored recommendations for teachers to use in supporting the child/young person.

• For the individual being assessed a diagnosis provides much more than a ‘label’. It can provide answers: about why they may have been struggling, or feeling ‘different’ at school, and a new perspective that may reduce their frustration, worry or tendencies of self-blame. With the support and strategies that a full diagnostic report provides, they can start to develop the confidence and independence they need to succeed as a learner.

It is important to understand that a report does not automatically secure extra funding, but it facilitates additional support - for example:

• A diagnostic report identifying a Specific Learning Difference (SpLD) ensures that a child/young person will be legally protected under the 2015 SEND Code of Practice: 0-25. Schools/colleges and other organisations are required to make some reasonable adjustments  to support their specific needs.

• Exam access arrangements, including extra time, can be awarded to students with a recognised SpLD. However, it is important to be aware that in most cases the school will need to use their own registered assessor to test and obtain the scores for eligibility for Exam Access Arrangements – you cannot ask them to accept the scores from my reports, unless this has been arranged between me and the school prior to assessment. This is a JCQ (Joint Council for Qualifications) requirement. Please also note it is not necessary to have a full diagnostic assessment in order for Exam Access Arrangements to be put in place by a school.

• In Higher Education, a learner who has an accredited diagnostic report will be able to apply for support from the Government via the Disabled Student Allowance (DSA). This support includes access to subsidised equipment, coaching and mentoring. Because I have an active APC, my reports confirming a diagnosis of dyslexia can be used when applying for the Disability Student Allowance (DSA) in higher education.

• In later life, a diagnostic assessment “acts as a passport to aspects of government funding and institutional, organisational and workplace support, sometimes over a lifetime and often during participation in training activities...”

  (The SpLD Assessment Standards Committee - Formats for Pre and Post-16 Years Diagnostic Assessment Reports for Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLDs)

What if I am still not sure whether an assessment would be right for my child/young person?

Speak to me! Use the Contact button to send an enquiry and we can arrange a time to chat through your concerns and discuss the options of full assessment or an initial screening.