I was delighted to speak in a special House of Lords debate on what assessment His Majesty’s Government has made of the use of assistive technology to support those with special educational needs (SEN). This is a hugely important topic and one very close to my heart. As I said during the debate:
I have assistive technology in my pocket, on my desk, at home and at work. I could not have done my A-levels, gone to university or got a job, and indeed could not do my work here, without it—it is that significant. If you will, assistive technology is all around me.
Lord Holmes of Richmond, House of Lords, 25th May 2023
Assistive technology can be transformative. It can enable and empower. For some children with SEN it can be the difference between daily struggles and a feeling of failure in school to accessing to the curriculum, becoming more independent and being able to demonstrate their talents. Why wouldn’t we want to make the most of the tools available to us to help all children learn and thrive?
The use of assistive technology in schools is an important questions and my colleagues Lord Addington and Lady Garden both made a key point about the need for more, and better, staff training.
Whilst I agree with all my colleagues said about schools I am slightly better informed about the Government’s policy around higher and further education in this space. In particular, the disabled students allowance, which is support to cover the study-related costs you have because of a mental health problem, long-term illness or any other disability.
I did a report last year on the disabled students’ allowance (DSA). I was not asked to or commissioned to. Why did I do it? Because the allowance was not working. I came across many findings around assistive technology from all those who kindly gave of their time—students past and present, those who have experienced DSA and assistive technology and those in positions of responsibility in higher and further education. Can I ask my noble friend the Minister if the Government agree with all 20 of the recommendations that I made? Specifically, with assistive technology, to ask for a contribution of £200 towards a laptop from students entitled to assistive technology, is that not a misreading of equalities legislation?
Text of speech shown in video, Lord Holmes, House of Lords, 25 May 2023
The Minister responded with an update about the new procurement framework introduced to cover DSA:
“Lord Holmes asked about work in relation to DSA; I thank him again for his report. As my noble friend knows, students have told the Student Loans Company that the current process is extremely long and complicated. We heard examples of that in the Committee this afternoon. Students have had to contact multiple companies to get the equipment they need. We really believe that the new service will be much more streamlined, and that the experience for students will be very much improved, including in relation to the delivery of assistive technology, familiarisation and training in its use, and ongoing support afterwards.”
Baroness Barran, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education.
I really do hope this proves to be the case and will be watching developments closely. There is so much more that can be done and it is essential that we do it. As I went on to say in the debate:
Ultimately, this is just about enabling talent, emancipating talent—be that at school, university, further education and indeed employment. Does my noble friend not agree that it would make sense to have an assistive technology passport which started from the first moment an individual who had a requirement stepped into school and ran throughout their time in education, higher education, further education or employment? Whatever journey or pathway an individual wanted to pursue, the passport would already be in place so that there would not have to be forms, explanations and, worse, justifications at every stage. We found that students who had done incredibly well in education using a particular type of kit were then told for the next step of the journey that it could not be recommended. How can that be right? This surely should be personalised, with the learner and then the worker at the centre, wrapping the services and assistive technology around the individual. That is the approach we take in other areas of policy. Would my noble friend not agree that that is completely the approach that we should and must take?
In response the Minister highlighted that the Department for Education has been working with the Department for Work and Pensions to pilot an adjustment passport “to smooth the transition into employment and to support people when they are changing jobs, including people with special educational needs and disabilities.” She was confident that the passport “will capture an individual’s in-work support needs, including their assistive technology requirements, and empower them to have more confident discussions with employers.”
It could be such a positive development and, again, I will be watching what happens post pilot with great interest. As I said before, this is about enabling talent and unlocking potential. Assistive technology provides the means to enable and empower the individual and we must do everything we can to get it to those who can benefit so that, ultimately, we all benefit.
Watch the full debate here: Parliamentlive.tv – Lords Grand Committee
Read the debate here: Assistive Technology: Support for Special Educational – Hansard – UK Parliament
Report into Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) – Lord Holmes of Richmond MBE (lordchrisholmes.com)