Decision Report 201900708

Summary

C, a support and advocacy worker, complained on behalf of their client (A) who was a student at Edinburgh College. A has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD, a developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people) and dyslexia (a common learning difficulty that can cause problems with reading, writing and spelling) and required additional support to fully access their course. C said that the college failed to provide the support that had been identified as being required for A. As a result of the lack of support, A felt that they had no option but to drop out of the course.

We found that, whilst A's support needs had been appropriately assessed and shared with their lecturers, the college failed to adequately document and record the support process in a structured way. Important information about A's support package was not available due to staff absences or departures. We acknowledged that the college has since taken steps to improve their processes in this respect. A had also applied to the Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) for funding for an upgraded laptop due to the software requirements of their course. We were critical that the college were unable to demonstrate that they presented the information that A asked to be considered by the SAAS in its entirety and without comment. As a result, we upheld this complaint.

Recommendations

What we asked the organisation to do in this case:

• Apologise to A for the failings identified. The apology should meet the standards set out in the SPSO guidelines on apology available at www.spso.org.uk/information-leaflets.

We have asked the organisation to provide us with evidence that they have implemented the recommendations we have made on this case by the deadline we set.