FOI Request - Placement Referrals to New Struan School
Request 101003865526
The purpose is to establish the level of demand for placements, the outcomes of those referrals, and any reasons recorded for refusals or limitations on admissions.
I am requesting the following information under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“the Act”):
1. Referrals to New Struan School (Scottish Autism), in Alloa
a) For each year from 2019 to the present, please provide the records held by [Council] of the number of referrals, placement requests, or enquiries made by [Council] to New Struan School.
b) For each referral or request, the recorded outcome (accepted, refused, or withdrawn).
c) For each refusal, any recorded reasons for the refusal.
d) Copies of any correspondence (letters, emails, reports or meeting notes) between [Council] and Scottish Autism since 2019 that reference:
i) Placement referrals or requests to New Struan School
ii) Admissions pauses or limits
iii) Staffing shortages at New Struan School
2. Children unable to access suitable placements
a) For each year from 2019 to the present, the records held by [Council] of the number of children with additional support needs in [Council] who were without access to an effective or suitable school placement, because one could not be identified or agreed, or because an allocated placement was unsuitable in practice. This should include children who:
i) Were awaiting placement in a specialist provision (including New Struan School or similar);
ii) Were receiving temporary home tuition or education otherwise than at school arranged by the council while awaiting a suitable placement;
iii) Were otherwise recorded as without an agreed school placement due to the level or complexity of their needs;
iv) Were formally allocated a placement but did not attend because the school, the family, or both agreed that the placement was unsuitable or could not meet the child’s needs.
b) Please exclude only those children whose parents formally chose elective home education on the basis that it was considered the most suitable way to educate their child, and where this was not the result of a lack of suitable school provision.
3. Waiting lists and unmet demand For each year from 2019 to the present, please provide any records of waiting lists or unmet demand for specialist autism placements (including New Struan or similar provisions).
4. Out-of-area or alternative placements For each year from 2019 to the present, the number of children with additional support needs placed by [Council] in provision outside the council area due to lack of local capacity, and the total annual cost of these placements.
5. Duration of lack of placement For each year from 2019 to the present, the average duration (in weeks or months) that children with additional support needs remained without a suitable placement, and the longest recorded duration.
6. Closure announcement correspondence Copies of any correspondence between [Council] and Scottish Autism since January 2024 that reference the proposed closure of New Struan School, contingency planning, or capacity to provide alternative placements.