Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018

14 Duties to prepare and maintain plans: local authorities

(1) The duty in subsection (2) applies if a local authority is responsible for a child or young person and—

(a) in the case of a child the local authority decides under section 13 that the child has additional learning needs,

(b) in the case of a young person who is a registered pupil at a maintained school in Wales or enrolled as a student at an institution in the further education sector in Wales, the local authority decides under section 13 that the young person has additional learning needs, or

(c) in the case of any other young person, the local authority—

(i) decides under section 13 that the young person has additional learning needs, and

(ii) decides in accordance with regulations under section 46 that it is necessary to prepare and maintain a plan under this section for the young person to meet his or her reasonable needs for education or training.

(2) The local authority must—

(a) prepare and maintain an individual development plan for that child or young person, or

(b) if the child or young person is, or is to be, a registered pupil at a maintained school in Wales and the authority considers it appropriate—

(i) prepare an individual development plan and direct the governing body of the school to maintain the plan, or

(ii) direct the governing body of the school to prepare and maintain a plan.

(3) But the duty in subsection (2) does not apply if the plan is about a young person and the young person does not consent to the plan being prepared or maintained.

(4) A local authority that maintains an individual development plan for a child or young person who is a registered pupil at a maintained school in Wales may direct the governing body of the school to maintain the plan.

(5) A local authority that prepares or maintains an individual development plan for a child or young person, or reconsiders a plan under section 27, must—

(a) consider whether additional learning provision should be provided to the child or young person in Welsh, and

(b) if it decides that a particular kind of additional learning provision should be provided in Welsh, specify in the plan that it should be provided in Welsh.

(6) If the reasonable needs of a child or young person for additional learning provision cannot be met unless a local authority also secures provision of the kind mentioned in subsection (7), the authority must include a description of that other provision in the plan.

(7) The kinds of provision are—

(a) a place at a particular school or other institution;

(b) board and lodging.

(8) The duty in subsection (6)—

(a) does not apply to a place at a particular school or other institution that is not a maintained school in Wales if the person or body responsible for admissions to the school or other institution does not consent;

(b) is subject to the duties in sections 55, 56(3) and 59.

(9) If the duty in subsection (6) applies to a local authority, it may not give a direction under subsection (2)(b) or (4).

(10) Where a local authority maintains an individual development plan for a child or a young person, the authority must—

(a) secure the additional learning provision described in the plan,

(b) secure any other provision described in the plan in accordance with subsection (6), and

(c) if the plan specifies that a particular kind of additional learning provision should be provided in Welsh, take all reasonable steps to secure that it is provided to the child or young person in Welsh.