Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

Amendment 155 would require the YPLA to establish a quality control framework which includes learners, parents and organisations representing learners. I shall also speak briefly to Amendment 161, which says: ""The YPLA must ensure that learning difficulty assessments are carried out by suitably qualified persons … within 3 months"." I declare again my interest as president of SKILL, the National Bureau for Students with Disabilities. I thank the Government again for their constructive engagement with SKILL over the summer on the guidance for Sections 139A and 140—that is, the guidance under the Act of last year. I cannot emphasise enough how useful it would be if we could see the Government’s response to the consultation that has taken place on the guidance before Report. However, even without that, I can say at this stage that, in the light of the engagement over the summer between Ministers and SKILL, it will be possible to withdraw the amendment this evening. I would like assurances on three points to clear up one or two remaining loose ends. These are matters on which I spoke at some length when we debated Clause 40 earlier in Committee. First, I seek assurance that the YPLA will establish a quality control framework to underpin the assessment process, involving disabled learners, parents and organisations representing disabled learners, as called for by Amendment 155. In other words, the reassurance that I am seeking is that it will be put in place by administrative action if it cannot be written into the Bill. I also hope that a complaints procedure will be put in place. Secondly, it would be good to know that a senior person will be required to sign off the Section 139A assessments, as a means of providing a framework of accountability—something that was found to be sadly lacking by the court in the case of Alloway v London Borough of Bromley. Thirdly, I would like to be reassured that the guidance that will be produced on the Bill will indicate that local authorities should arrange an assessment of disabled young people’s learning and support needs, including their transport needs as well as wider transition planning, wherever they believe that an assessment would be beneficial, regardless of whether the learner has been assessed or supported before. In other words, I seek an assurance that all those needing an assessment will receive one. If the Minister will help me on these points, it should be possible to withdraw the amendment.