COMPREHENSIVE AUTISM DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR SCHOOLS

That this House praises the work undertaken by Fife Council's education services to create a comprehensive autism development plan for school children; welcomes the strategy as an example for other council education services; notes with concern that effective services for autism will never be delivered consistently unless service providers are required to operate to standards which are properly enforced and have been drawn up specifically for people with an autistic spectrum disorder; recognises that it is unacceptable that day release courses should be deemed adequate training for a teacher who is teaching children with a severe and complex disability; and calls for funding to be allocated to the individual child or adult whose needs are being addressed to ensure that the money is spent in the most effective manner possible.