Disability Inclusion Profile

Identifying students to undertake a Disability Inclusion Profile

Existing students in Victorian government schools can access the profile where the student:

• has an individual education plan (IEP) in place, that has been reviewed and updated within the past 3 months – IEPs are also known as individual learning plans, individual learning improvement plans and Koorie education learning plans
• has a student support group (SSG) that meets regularly (at least once per term)
• has received supplementary, substantial or extensive adjustments to enable participation in learning due to disability for a period of at least 10 weeks prior to a profile meeting or 10 weeks cumulatively over the past 12 months. Refer to: Definition of disability and classification of supplementary, substantial and extensive adjustments.

If a student is an existing student and adjustments have been in place for 10 weeks previously, schools do not need to wait 10 further weeks before submitting a profile request.

New students entering the Victorian government school system can access the profile prior to their commencement in school or early in their commencement year where the student is receiving ongoing and extensive support from an inclusion or disability support service. Refer to the section below: New students entering the Victorian government school system.

Undertaking a profile meeting is not compulsory for any student. Schools, in partnership with the SSG and parents/carers determine whether to undertake the process.

The profile is not limited to students who are eligible for tier 3 student-level funding. It is available to and may benefit a broader group of students that meet the requirements set out above. Refer to: Tier 3 student-level funding.

Once the SSG has agreed to request a profile meeting, the school is responsible for requesting the meeting and managing the process with the facilitator service. Refer to: Requesting a Disability Inclusion Profile meeting.

Certain students with disability should be treated with priority, including:

• students with disability in statutory out-of-home care, in accordance with the partnering agreement between the Department of Education and the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH)
• students with disability who are Koorie
• students with a deteriorating medical condition.

Refer to the Supporting Students in Out-of-Home Care policy and the Koorie Education policy.

Definition of disability and classification of supplementary, substantial, and extensive adjustments

To access the profile, existing students in Victorian government schools are required to have received supplementary, substantial or extensive levels of adjustments, as per the definitions provided in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD), to enable participation in learning due to disability. These adjustments must be in place for a period of at least 10 weeks prior to a profile meeting, or 10 weeks cumulatively over the past 12 months (as noted in the requirements above). If a student is an existing student and adjustments have been in place for 10 weeks previously, schools do not need to wait 10 further weeks before submitting a profile request.

A diagnosis of disability is not required to access the profile and there are no mandatory assessments or reports required to prove eligibility for a profile meeting.

For the purposes of the profile process, disability is defined in accordance with the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (DDA) and Disability Standards for Education 2005 (Cth) (the Standards). This is a broad definition and includes intellectual, mental and physical impairments and behaviours that are a symptom or manifestation of the disability. The Standards apply to all students with disability.

This broad definition includes loss of bodily functions, damage to bodily functions, disease or illness, and disorders of thought processes, emotions, judgement or behaviour. It also includes an imputed disability. The Standards apply to all students with disability.

Adjustments can be student-specific or school-wide. The frequency, intensity and personalisation of adjustments increases through the levels of adjustment. Refer to: Supporting information guidance for schools (DOCX) and School-wide adjustments guidance (DOCX) for further information.

This definition is also used as part of the NCCD process.

Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on Students with Disability

The NCCD is an annual collection of information about the adjustments that Australian schools make for students with disability. Schools can use the NCCD to help in identifying students to undertake the profile. The NCCD process supports schools to classify adjustments into 4 levels:

• quality differentiated teaching practice
• supplementary
• substantial
• extensive.

The NCCD also allows schools to determine the broad category of disability for each student from one of four categories:

• physical
• cognitive
• sensory
• social/emotional.

For more information on the NCCD, refer to: Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability.

Refer to: Notification of Disability Inclusion Profile outcome for more information on how the Disability Inclusion Profile can inform the NCCD for schools.

New students entering the Victorian government school system

For new students entering the Victorian government school system (for example, prep students or students transferring from other school systems), schools should work with families, students, and other professionals to support a smooth and positive transition to school. For prep/foundation students, this will build upon information and approaches identified in the student’s transition learning and development statement. Refer to: Transition – Early Childhood to School.

New students entering the Victorian government school system can access the profile prior to their commencement in school or early in their commencement year in cases where the student is receiving ongoing and extensive support from an inclusion or disability support service. This is appropriate for a limited cohort of students, typically enrolled in certain specialist schools, in recognition of the need to have undertaken planning and implementation of adjustments before commencing enrolment.

Evidence of ongoing support from an inclusion or disability support services can include one or more of the following sources:

• written medical advice/personal care advice from the student’s treating medical and/or allied health practitioners
• National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) progress report (existing) and assessments from a therapy/disability service provider – from the last 24 months
• goals within a kindergarten inclusion support plan
• a record of involvement/service from a specialist or disability service provider. This may include, for example, allied health professionals and the preschool field officers program for kindergarten children with additional needs, disability health and wellbeing programs. This can also include students with documented high functional needs transferring from other jurisdictions or Catholic and Independent sectors.

Schools are expected to use existing documentation for these purposes – there will generally be no need to request new documentation from inclusion or disability support services.

Profile requests before the student commences should only be made in exceptional circumstances. This pathway is only appropriate for students with stable and profound functional needs. Documentation outlining planning for adjustments in the incoming school setting must still be provided to complete the profile request, in line with the supporting information requirements.

For pre-prep students, these requests must only be submitted in term 4 of the preceding school year.

When considering requesting a profile for a student prior to their commencement in school, schools must consult with their disability coordinator to seek their advice and guidance. The school must keep a record of the disability coordinator’s guidance and upload it to the DIFS Portal if they decide to submit the profile request.

The final decision to submit the profile request is the school’s responsibility after considering the disability coordinator’s guidance. The facilitator service will confirm that the disability coordinator has provided guidance before progressing the profile request.

Where a profile meeting is scheduled prior to the student commencing at their new school, evidence of adjustments provided in another setting will be requested by the facilitator service to support the profile process. Provision of such documents must be made in accordance with the department’s Enrolment policy. This may include:

• equivalent of an IEP or other planning documentation from another setting
• equivalent of SSG minutes from another setting
• documents containing information related to the student’s learning and development, such as the transition learning and development statement for students transitioning from early childhood to school or an early ABLES learning report for the student in their new learning context. This evidence may be provided ahead of or during the meeting.

Note, the profile works best when it is completed in the learning context that the student requires adjustments for. A profile completed for a student when they are in preschool, another school, or home setting may not accurately capture the student’s needs in the school they are transitioning to, as the new school environment will differ from that of the previous setting.

Establishing a new student support group and developing an individual education plan

Where a SSG does not exist for a participating student (for example, a new enrolment), the school is required to establish one. Refer to: Student Support Groups policy.

A school will need to work with the SSG to develop an IEP. Refer to: Individual Education Plans (IEPs) policy.

Timelines for undertaking the Disability Inclusion Profile

Schools can request a profile meeting at any time for students that meet the requirements set out above.

Schools should start requests for profile meetings in Term 1 and Term 2 for students who may be eligible for tier 3 student-level funding. Refer to: Tier 3 student-level funding. For a suggested overview of the process across 3 years refer to: Disability Inclusion reform principal checklist (PPTX).

Disability Inclusion regional implementation teams and other area workforces are also available to support schools to identify and prioritise students for profile meetings throughout the school year.

For students who have enrolled at a new school, tier 3 funding will be backdated for eligible students if a complete profile request is received within 2 terms of student enrolment. A complete profile request means that screening requirements, a completed profile information form and all supporting information is uploaded to the DIFS Portal within 2 terms of enrolment. Completing the screening questions alone will not meet the eligibility criteria for backdated funding. The meeting does not have to be held within 2 terms.

A complete profile request is confirmed when the school receives an email from DIFS with the following subject line: ‘Disability Inclusion Profile – supporting information approved: Complete profile request’.

International students

International students (including asylum seekers and refugees) can access a Disability Inclusion Profile on the same basis as other Victorian government school students. The profile request can be submitted once a current enrolment is in place. For information about international student enrolment processes refer to: International Student Program.

For international fee paying students, any Tier 3 funding will be allocated to the school the student attends separately to the Student Resource Package.

Students turning 19 or 20

The profile process is available to students turning 19 or 20 if they are enrolled in a Victorian government school. Schools must refer to the age eligibility and approval requirements for government schools. Refer to the Enrolment policy.

Schools are referred to the guidelines, form and timelines for this group of students available at: Students with Disability.