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ASL Review

ASL Review Update 2026

Read the latest update about how things are going with the recommendations from the ASL Review.

What is the ‘ASL Review’?

If you need extra help with your learning, this is called additional support for learning (ASL).

Find out more about ASL

Back in 2019, the Scottish Government started to explore how well ASL works in schools.

This resulted in a report called ‘Support for Learning: All Our Children and All Their Potential‘ – but most people call it ‘the ASL Review’ for short.

The ASL Review suggested things that would help improve education in Scotland. This led to something called an Action Plan which laid out some steps to make it better.

You can watch this video to find out more:

@reach.scot

What is the ASL Review? If you need extra help with your learning, this is called additional support for learning (ASL) Back in 2019, a person called Angela Morgan was asked by the Scottish Government to find out how well additional support for learning (ASL) works in schools. So Angela spoke to lots of different people, including children and young people. She asked them what works well, what doesn’t work well and what could be changed. Afterwards, all of the information gathered was written into a report. This was called ‘Support for Learning: All Our Children and All Their Potential’ – but most people call it ‘the ASL Review’ for short. In the ASL Review, Angela Morgan made recommendations for what should happen next in order to make things better for pupils in Scotland. These became an ‘ASL action plan’ which outlines the next steps to make her recommendations happen. This whole process is important because every child and young person in Scotland has the right to support _and education. In summary, what the ASL Review highlighted is that some things need to improve to make sure this right becomes a reality for every pupil in Scotland. As a result, making these improvements will help improve the lives of children and young people – like you – across Scotland. Over the next 18 months, children and young people will be given more opportunities to have their say on different things relating to additional support for learning. The Scottish Government, and its partners are exploring more ways to involve children and young people in shaping education policies and guidelines. They will make sure the voices of pupils are represented in the spaces where decisions are made. There will be another Action Plan Review in 2026. #learning #support #education #scotland #update

♬ Chill and gentle lo-fi/10 minutes(1455687) – nightbird_bgm

What has happened since?

Since the ASL Review, people have been working on ways to try and make school more inclusive and make sure young people get the support they need.

The Scottish Government released a progress report in 2024 and have recently updated everyone again on progress since then.

What’s new?

Listening to children and young people

A group of young people called the Inclusion Ambassadors have helped shape the changes. Their ideas in their Vision for Success, about inclusion and communication, have been shared with councils to help improve local projects.

You can watch this video to find out more about how the Inclusion Ambassadors work fed into the ASL Action Plan:

@reach.scot

Who are the Inclusion Ambassadors and how do they link in with the ASL Review and ASL Action Plan in Scotland? #Inclusion #successlooksdifferent #support #education #scotland

♬ 7AM – Slowed + Reverb – Adrian

Local authorities have also been encouraged to think more about additional support needs (ASN) when they make plans. This means they should ask children and young people, as well as their parents and carers, for their views before making big decisions.

Over the past year, organisations like Children in Scotland, Intercultural Youth Scotland, Children’s Parliament, Scottish Youth Parliament and Young Scot have been working together to gather more views from young people about education. The Scottish Government have said that what these young people say will help to shape future changes.

Your Rights

The Scottish Government has also confirmed that the Additional Support for Learning law fits with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This means that your rights should be part of decisions about your education and support.

Find out more

Work is still ongoing – but these updates show how young people’s voices are helping shape what happens next.

If you’d like to read the full update, you can visit the Scottish Government website by hitting the button below.

Read the full update

This information is also available for parents, carers and professionals

Visit Enquire

More Information

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Inclusion Ambassadors

Everything you need to know about the Inclusion Ambassadors and the work they’re doing.

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