Lynne Neagle, Cabinet Secretary for Education
I am committed to progressing the agreed priority of implementing the IWPRB recommendations to move Additional Learning Needs Coordinators (ALNCos) to the leadership scale and to leaders’ conditions.
In June, I consulted with stakeholders on moving ALNCos to the leadership scale, as recommended in the IWPRB’s fifth report (recommendations 4 and 5). It was clear from the feedback that our social partners wanted this change to happen as soon as possible, but also wanted it to be carefully planned to avoid unintended consequences.
We therefore allowed additional time to work through these issues with partners. I would like to thank members of the Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Partnership Forum (PPF) for their willingness to work with us over the summer to consider options to implement this change.
I am pleased to be consulting on changes to the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions (Wales) Document (STPC(W)D) 2025 which would move ALNCos to the leadership scale with the STPC(W)D specifying that the pay policy for the school should determine a 5 point scale relative to the head teacher grouping.
I am also very aware of the importance of this change being funded and, as announced yesterday in the budget, I am pleased to confirm additional funding from Welsh Government will be made available to local authorities for this financial year and from 2026/27 onwards for the purpose of supporting this change.
I will now be inviting written comments from key stakeholders by 2 December on the proposed changes to the STPC(W)D. I will consider all responses to the consultation before making my final decision but it is my intention to make the necessary legislative changes before the end of the Senedd term.
I would like to thank our social partners for their continued support in this matter and I look forward to working with them on the agreed priorities as set out in my Written Statement on 22 September.