These reports link to the provision of AT and AAC and have been categorised by where a report can be found, for example on a Government site or related to the Community, Education and finally reports related to Services

Government

• The Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, in its report “Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People” (2005), recognised that equipment “can make all the difference to whether someone can live independently, work, be a parent and participate in their local community” and “Equipment should be provided to disabled children promptly based on a multi-agency assessment that occurs as soon as possible after the child’s needs are identified…” “There is evidence that providing appropriate equipment and adaptations increases independence, reduces the need for personal assistance and prevents or reduces health problems.”

• Report to the Eye Care Review Steering Group from the Working Group on Children’s Services in 2004, stated that there may be no consistent pattern of support and “some agencies only offer support to children who are registered as blind or partially sighted. Given the limitations of the registration system, particularly for children, this must leave many unsupported.”
  
• A Commons education committee report which found the SEN system in England “not fit for purpose”. The committee also said it was a “tough, tough world” for the minority of families fighting to get a formal statement of SEN.” (Education and Skills - Third Report 2006)

• …”the study highlighted inconsistencies in approaches to the treatment of resources to children with complex SEN in mainstream schools and to differences in the interpretation of both relevant guidance and statutory requirements.” Investigation into the funding of SEN provision in schools and Education Elsewhere – Government response to Select Committee report 2006

• “Arrangements for monitoring expenditure and outcomes for pupils with SEN were well developed in only four LEAs in the sample although 11 of the others had limited arrangements for monitoring in place or could demonstrate plans to develop more comprehensive approaches in future.” Investigation into the funding of SEN provision in schools and Education Elsewhere (2003)

• In Northern Ireland a review Survey of Provision for Students with Learning Difficulties and/or Disabilities (SLDD) in Colleges of Further Education in 2003/2004 showed that “a significantly high proportion of the Additional Support Funding is given to students presenting difficulties in literacy.

• National Audit Office report Gaining and retaining a job: The Department for Work and Pensions’ Support for Disabled People” (pub 2005)

• The Offender’s Learning Journey: learning and skills provision for adult offenders in England (OLJ, Adults) it has been noted that with “the increase of e-learning and the recognised need for assistive technology the situation has become very complex. Procedures for procurement in prison education are linked to a lead provider which had not been identified at the time of going to press (January 2007).
  

• “…a high proportion of young people in Youth Offender Institutions present with special educational needs and 15% have statements of SEN (compared to 3% of the total school population).” (House of Commons, Education and Skills Committee, Special Educational Needs, Third Report of Session 2005–06)

• 'Disabled for life?' attitudes towards, and experiences of, disability in Britain

Community

• Using Care Pathways West Midlands Region

• There is a large unmet need for community equipment to help with, for example, eating, going to the toilet and sleeping. The Community Equipment Use and Needs of Disabled Children and Their Families,(2002)

• Evidence working Group of the Telecare Policy Collaborative chaired by James Barlow (Nov 2006)

• Don’t push me around! Barnardo’s and Whizz-Kidz have collaborated in the production of this report to highlight their concerns about the current state of wheelchair provision for children in the UK and the need for urgent action.
• Scope highlighted the fact that “there are no statistics on the numbers of disabled people who need AAC equipment” in their Speak for Yourself briefing, and “CAP highlighted many issues especially the overriding need for combined national, ring-fenced funding with local service delivery.”(Scope (2006) Speak for Yourself briefing for Members of Parliament.)

• According to Sheila Brown (CEO of BDF New Life) in a “mid campaign investigation into actual spending on equipment for disabled children in England”,(2006), “research has shown that a disabled child under two will need three pieces of equipment daily to provide basic care (also stated in Disabled Children and Young People and those with Complex Health Needs – Dept of Health, 2004)

• The Pre-school Learning Alliance undertook a project to “establish the effectiveness of the transfer of children with special educational needs into school. The findings from the project established that both pre-schools and primary schools often thought that the transitional process was ineffective.”
  

• Early Years: Progress in Developing High Quality Childcare and Early Education Accessible to All showed that “more training is needed (especially for childminders) in caring for disabled children and those with special educational needs.“
  

• “We do not see how to teach a child to communicate by speech can be any different from teaching him to communicate by writing; both are clearly educational.” The Lancashire Judgement (R v Lancashire County Council ex parte CM, 1989).
  

• The RITE Transition Project found that “Young people with speech impairments are most poorly served by the education system. Delays in recognising their ability to communicate and in obtaining appropriate equipment and assistance often result in lost years of learning and development.”

• Moving into adulthood - Joseph Rowntree Foundation (June 2002) – Report linked to the issues of transition that meet disabled children moving into adulthood.

• “A study published in May 2004 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that 43% of the disabled community who have specialist devices have problems with their equipment.

• The research report “Gadgets, Gizmos and Gaining Independence” mentions the existing provision of AT, covering areas such as Telecare, Telemedicine, Smart Homes and Communication Aids, and includes case studies where these gadgets have successfully improved the quality of life of people with learning disabilities.

Education

• “funding for AT across sectors is both complex and uncoordinated”.(Becta,2006 - Becta’s View Assistive technology).

• The Norah Fry Research Centre have produced “ All Together Better. A guide for families of a disabled child with complex health care needs.” This guide not only points out the need for a Care Plan and Key Worker but also “draws on the experiences of families interviewed as part of the Working Together research project.”

• The EYTSEN project showed that parents of pre-school children who attended educational centres seemed to have access to a wider range of help compared to those whose children stayed at home. The services used the most were speech and language therapy. A further finding showed that “some parents were dissatisfied because they felt they were being denied access to an educational psychologist (specialised assessment) or felt the ‘statementing’ process took too long.”
• All the reports on provision discuss multi-agency working with parental choice – there appears to remain a gap between proposals and reality “Problem for users with complex needs promoted by fragmented services.. and issues over funding and responsibility for maintenance ” (Chailey Heritage presentation, 2006)

• Making Reasonable Adjustments with Disabled Students in Higher Education (2002)

• A recent scoping research project on FE colleges and the impact on AT illustrated how one “Access Coordinator believes that a recognised course in assistive technology leading to a qualification would be useful.”

• Learning for Living and Work strategy, (Oct 2006) LSC report addressing the needs of those with learning disabilities and other disabilities.

• The Snowdon Survey 2006 showed that “too many disabled students are still being failed by the support system.”

• A further study on the education and employment of disabled young people, in 2005, “concluded that “…the main effort should focus on transforming the actual opportunities available to disabled young people, for example through: ensuring continuity of support (including funding, equipment and personnel).”

• Skill noted in their Response to Investing in Skills for the LSC in 2004 that by weighting the distribution of funds for ALS there are “no safeguards in it for learners with high support needs.” Across Scotland a number of staff in colleges who responded to the Executive’s report on the Further Education Additional Support Needs for Learning allowance “also felt that the labelling and categorisation of students in order to obtain funding is a negative association which fails to promote inclusiveness.

• NIACE has been commissioned by the LSC to develop a model for learner involvement that ensures that learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities can respond to the government's National Learner Panel on issues pertinent to them. This model will be responsive to the views of learners with a range of disabilities, including learners with complex needs. (2008)
• Brian Lamb on 3rd August 2009, "submitted his reports on the Quality and clarity of statements and Inspection, accountability and school improvement to the Secretary of State. In his accompanying letter, Brian outlines his recommendations, including two statutory changes: one to provide a right of appeal for parents if a local authority decides not to amend a statement after a review; one to place a specific duty on Ofsted to report on the quality of the education provided for disabled children and children with SEN. The Secretary of State’s reply accepts Brian’s recommendations and commits to finding a legislative opportunity to make the changes." DCSF Lamb Inquiry
  

Services

• Figures suggest that the number of assistive technology products has also proliferated during the past 30 years from just a few hundred in the UK and US to over 35,000 today. (DeHavilland Information Services plc, 2005 NoMensa Price Falls predicted for assistive technologies)
• FAST has also stressed that procedures need to be clarified at all levels.(FAST, 2006 - Implementing a vision for the provision of assistive technology for communication)

• Solicitor, Sean Humber mentioned in a Prison Report (2005) that "for all the cases he had acted for there had had been no written assessment of “his clients’ disability needs, either on reception or afterwards". Disability Now have followed this up with an article called "Outsiders inside"
  

• “Appropriately selected adaptations and AT can make a significant contribution to the provision of living environments which facilitate independence. They can both substitute for traditional formal care services and supplement these services in a cost-effective way.” (Can adapting the homes of older people and providing assistive technology pay its way?)

• The Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST) recommended in their Assistive Technology Standards for Service Provision report that “There should be an increased level of investment in collating and building the evidence base of what works in AT services.”