A recent report from the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee of the Scottish Parliament on ADHD and autism support highlighted that children and adults are frequently waiting multiple years for assessments of these conditions.
It called on the Scottish Government to take urgent action to develop and implement a national plan that ensures adults and children with autism and ADHD across all health boards in Scotland have clear, consistent pathways to support.
The report further reinforces the need for the Scottish Government to introduce the Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence (LDAN) Bill to Parliament at the earliest opportunity.
The LDAN Bill would help tackle long waiting times through new national and local strategies and introduce mandatory training for health and social care staff, as well as teachers and school staff, to ensure people’s needs are identified and met.
The importance of the LDAN Bill in tackling the inequalities faced by individuals and their families cannot be overstated, and it has the potential to make a real difference for them in Scotland across education, healthcare, and employment.
Communication support needs has risen by 296 per cent.
Autistic spectrum disorder has risen by 252 per cent.
Interrupted learning has risen by 497 per cent.
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), an alliance of leading providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people,has raised concerns over massive increases in conditions contributing to additional support needs (ASN).
Noting that support is at breaking point, it has urged the public to put the political parties on the spot as to how they are going to address Scotland’s ASN crisis in the run up to the Scottish Parliamentary election next year.
The figures, based on an analysis of the latest annual Scottish Government pupil census,1 indicate that between 2015 and 2025 the number of pupils identified with a mental health problem, for which additional support is required, has increased by526 per cent, those with communication support needs has risen by296 per cent, those with dyslexia by 129 per cent,autistic spectrum disorder has increased by 252 per cent, social, emotional and behavioural difficulties by 144 per cent, those with a physical health problems by142 per cent, interrupted learning by 497 per cent and those who are looked after by 42 per cent. (see table at end of the press release for full details).
The increase is in part due to better identification and diagnosis of these conditions, as well as the impacts of Covid-19, social media and the cost-of-living crisis.
While the level of need has increased dramatically, the level of support has not matched this, with cuts in the numbers of specialist ASN teachers and support staff.
The SCSC has repeated its call for greater resourcing by councils and the Scottish Government to support those with ASN, who disproportionately come from lower-income families and areas of deprivation.
The coalition also raised concerns about the effectiveness of a presumption of mainstreaming, that all pupils be educated in a mainstream educational environment unless specific exceptional circumstances apply, without the necessary classroom support.
This lack of support for those with ASN is also seen as a key cause of increased classroom violence and disruption, with a resultant impact on fellow pupils and staff.
A spokesperson for the SCSC said: “Given an escalating number of children and young people with ASN, it is vital that those requiring it get the care and support that they need.
“This is clearly difficult in an environment of austerity and budget cuts, highlighted by reductions in, for example, the number of ASN teachers.
“While we also support the presumption of mainstreaming, that all children and young people be educated in a mainstream educational environment unless specific exceptional circumstances apply, it is clearly difficult to see how this is functioning properly for all those with ASN given a fall in specialist support and dramatic increases in the number of those identified with conditions such as mental health problems and autism.
“The current system of provision is at breaking point, and we are witnessing increasing levels of classroom disruption, a key cause of this being the increase in the number of those with ASN, who are not receiving the support they are entitled to.
“The Scottish Government and councils need to work together to provide the necessary resourcing to address the needs of those children and young people with ASN, who represent some of the most vulnerable individuals in our society.
“We would urge the public to put the political parties on the spot as we approach the Scottish Parliament election next year and understand how they are going to address Scotland’s ASN crisis.”
Reasons for support for pupils with ASN (pupils may have more than one reason for additional support):
Staff praised as national target is exceeded again
The national standard on waiting times for children and young people accessing mental health services has been met for the second quarter in row.
Latest Public Health statistics show 91.6% of those referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) were seen within 18 weeks from January to March – the Scottish Government standard is 90%.
The figure is an increase from 90.6% for the previous quarter and from 86% for the same quarter in 2024.
However the Children First charity says the figures are just ‘the tip of the iceberg’.
Visiting the CAMHS service in NHS Forth Valley to thank staff for their dedication, Mental Wellbeing Minister Maree Todd said: “We want all children and young people to be able to access appropriate mental health treatment as and when they need to, and this continued progress on waiting times is testament to the hard-working staff who care for those referred to these services.
“We have exceeded our promise to provide funding for 320 additional staff for CAMHS by 2026 and this will no doubt have contributed to the improvements we are seeing but I am well aware there is still much to be done if this is to be sustained and consistent across Scotland.
“However, we are on the right path and the £123.5 million we have allocated to NHS Boards this year will mean the quality and delivery of all mental health services – including CAMHS – will continue to improve.”
Lesley Dunabie, Department Manager & Head of Nursing for NHS Forth Valley CAMHS, said: “We are delighted that the changes introduced by local staff over the last 18 months have made such a positive impact to our waiting times and significantly improved the services and support available for children and young people with serious mental illness.
“We are committed to building on this by continuing to develop and improve local services for children and young people and working with a wide range of partners to help increase access to support in local schools and communities at an earlier stage.”
Children First: Figures are ‘tip of the iceberg’
Mary Glasgow, chief executive of Children First, said: “We know that today’s figures are just the tip of the iceberg. Every day, Children First teams across Scotland are hearing from more and more children and young people in severe distress. Scotland is facing a childhood emergency. Children need help now.
“Scottish Government must do more to invest in early help and support to prevent children reaching crisis point.
“If you are worried about your child, then Children First’s support line is here to help. You can contact our friendly team on 08000 28 22 33 or on our website at https://www.childrenfirst.org.uk/supportline .”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Chilldren’s Services Coalition commented: “The latest figures highlighting that 164 children and young people have been waiting over a year for mental health treatment are extremely alarming.
“What we need is not just parity of esteem between mental health and physical health, it’s parity of action and parity of spend.
“We are facing a mental health emergency, and many of our children and young people are at breaking point, with stress and anxiety reaching alarming levels as they battle with the long shadow of lockdown and the rising cost of living. This is also having a negative impact on classroom behaviour, affecting the young people concerned, their fellow pupils and staff.
“Each one of these statistics is an individual, and we would urge the Scottish Government to ensure the adequate resourcing of mental health services for our children and young people so that they can get the care and support they need, without lengthy waits.”
