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. The profile can be completed in primary, secondary or specialist settings. 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 a range of school related activities
• adjustments to the learning environment.

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 or to comply with COVID-19 restrictions. Refer to: Disability Inclusion Profile – conducting a meeting by video/teleconferencing (DOCX). Under exceptional circumstances, profile meetings can be conducted in an alternate/third-party location. Schools should contact their regional disability coordinator to discuss this prior to arranging the meeting. The facilitator service must also agree to this.

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 the level of adjustment being provided or required for the student to participate in each of the profile’s 31 educational related activities, across 6 domains. Refer to: Disability Inclusion Profile (DOCX). 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 parent/carer(s), 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.

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 on behalf of the department, will receive 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 and certified 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. Facilitators will guide the SSG through the profile sections and consider the information provided at the meeting, as well as relevant supporting information, to finalise the profile and develop the profile report. Refer to: Finalising the Disability Inclusion Profile.

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.

Disability Inclusion Profiles for students attending satellite campuses

Satellite campuses should follow the process (either Program for Students with Disabilities (PSD) or Disability Inclusion) of the base (or main) school, regardless of the campus location. For example, for students based in campuses outside the current Disability Inclusion roll-out areas, but the base school is in a Disability Inclusion roll-out area, Disability Inclusion Profiles processes are in place.