Disability Inclusion Profile

The purpose of a Disability Inclusion Profile meeting and process

The profile is a strengths-based tool used to identify a student’s strengths, needs, and the educational adjustments required to enable their participation at school. The profile is completed through a structured meeting with the student’s student support group (SSG) and led by a trained facilitator. During the profile meeting, the SSG will work through the sections of the Disability Inclusion Profile. The sections include:

• student’s strengths, interests and motivations, aspirations and student voice
• student’s functional needs, across 31 school related activities
• adjustments to the learning environment.

The profile includes sections related to the student’s strengths and educational aspirations, their functional needs across a range of educational activities, and the adjustments required to enable them to participate in their education. The facilitator will support meeting participants to discuss and agree to the levels of adjustment (PDF) being provided or required for the student’s participation and learning at school. Facilitators generally conduct profile meetings by focusing on students’ functional needs and adjustments at a domain level. This allows for a holistic understanding of students and their experience in the school setting. Refer to: Disability Inclusion Profile (PDF). The facilitator will ask participants to identify the order in which they would prefer to work through the profile.

The profile and surrounding process provides the SSG with a deeper understanding of a student’s functional needs and the supports required to meet those needs. A SSG is most appropriate for working through the profile as it brings together the people with the most knowledge of the student and their schooling.

This process can help schools improve individual education planning for the student and school-wide planning for all students who require adjustments. The outcomes of the profile meeting will also inform Disability Inclusion tier 3 student-level funding allocations for students with high needs.

Schools will need to prepare for, co-ordinate, and participate in the profile process, with parents/carers, to receive Disability Inclusion tier 3 student-level funding. Refer to: Tier 3 student-level funding. The Disability Inclusion Profile in secondary schools factsheet (DOCX) is available to support secondary schools participate in the process.

Holding a Disability Inclusion Profile meeting

Profile meetings should be held face-to-face at the student’s school. However, a school and family can opt for a virtual/remote profile meeting if this is preferred. Refer to: Disability Inclusion Profile – conducting a meeting by video/teleconferencing (DOCX).

Part or all of a profile meeting can be held outdoors on school grounds if this supports family participation. Schools should discuss this with the facilitator service to ensure facilitators are prepared for holding the meeting outdoors. Under exceptional circumstances, profile meetings can be conducted in an alternate/third-party location. Schools should contact their disability coordinator and the facilitator service to discuss this prior to arranging the meeting.

Facilitator role

The Disability Inclusion Facilitator Service (facilitator service) has been established to deliver parts of the profile process, including the facilitator role. This service, delivered by Australian Healthcare Associates (AHA) on behalf of the department, receives requests for profile meetings from schools, work with schools to schedule meetings, provide a facilitator for the meeting, and prepare a profile report for the school and family.

Facilitators are experienced allied health professionals and/or teachers with expertise, qualifications, or training in inclusive education. Facilitators are trained in administering the profile in schools.

A trained facilitator will support schools and families to work together to complete the profile in a specially convened meeting. To prepare for the profile meetings, the facilitator will review key documentation, such as the IEP and SSG minutes. Schools should be able to talk about the supporting information at the profile meeting and connect it to the relevant activities within the profile. Focusing on students’ functional needs and adjustments at a domain level, facilitators will guide the SSG through the profile and consider the information provided at the meeting, as well as relevant supporting information, to finalise the profile and develop the profile report.

In finalising the profile, facilitators will consider the information discussed in the meeting as well as relevant supporting information provided prior to the meeting. Schools should share all relevant information in the meeting, as only information shared with the full student support group will inform the indicative level of adjustments agreed upon at the meeting. These levels of adjustment are subject to moderation and quality assurance processes. At times facilitators may request additional supporting information to confirm what was discussed in the meeting. In this case, only the documents requested by the facilitator should be uploaded. Any additional documents that were not discussed in the meeting or requested by the facilitator after the meeting cannot be considered. For example, a facilitator cannot consider the adjustments outlined in a Behaviour Support Plan if this document was not discussed in the meeting and explicitly requested after the meeting. Refer to: Finalising the Disability Inclusion Profile.

Once the profile has been finalised it cannot be reopened again to consider additional supporting information.

Facilitators are unable to tour a school, visit classrooms or observe a student.

Disability Inclusion Profiles for students attending 2 schools (dual enrolment)

For students attending 2 schools (dual enrolment), one profile meeting should be held for the student. The facilitator will complete one profile for the student that covers both schools.

The school with the greater time fraction should submit the profile request and identify in the online request that the student attends two schools/is dual enrolled. Refer to: Requesting a Disability Inclusion Profile meeting.

Representatives, including the principal or principal’s nominee and relevant teacher(s), from both schools should attend the meeting. Refer to: Participating in the Disability Inclusion Profile meeting – roles and responsibilities. A profile preparation tool (DOCX) is available to support schools in collecting information about the student from multiple teachers and other relevant staff, including in different school settings.

The SSG will be asked to reach consensus on the level of adjustment based on the adjustments in place in both settings. Supporting information from both settings will be required to demonstrate the adjustments in place to support the student. Refer to: Supporting information guidance for schools (DOCX).

Should the student be eligible for tier 3 funding, one tier 3 allocation will be provided pro-rata to the schools, based on the student’s enrolment across the 2 schools. Refer to: Tier 3 student-level funding.

Students transitioning/moving schools

Completing the profile process is the responsibility of the school that the student is attending when the profile meeting is held. This means that if a student moves to another Victorian government school, the new school will be responsible for completing the profile process. This includes when a student transitions from a primary school to a secondary school. The outgoing and incoming school should discuss the status of the profile request and agree to a plan for progressing through the profile process. The facilitator service must be notified of these arrangements in advance of the meeting. Either school may contact the facilitator service to arrange for the profile request to be transferred to the student’s new school. The facilitator service will advise both schools of their responsibilities and next steps for both schools to complete the profile process.

Both schools should attend the profile meeting if the student has moved within the last 6 months.