While colleges are responsible for meeting the learning needs of their students, many also require support from local authority social work departments to meet other needs. This includes personal care support (e.g. help going to the toilet, preparing and eating meals, etc.) and help with day-to-day needs (e.g. transport, getting around, etc.) from local authority social work departments, or support from health boards to meet their healthcare needs (e.g. help taking medication).
Many learners told us that without such support it can often be very difficult (or impossible) to access or remain in college. The research highlighted learners’ (and parents’) confusion around who should be providing transport, and arrangements often vary between different regions. While both colleges and social work departments are able to provide support with transport, in many cases both cite financial reasons for not being able to provide support and often refer learners to the other agency. In some areas, both colleges and social work may provide support with transport, whereas in other areas some learners struggle to get support from either agency.
“Without social work providing door-to-door transport then my son would not have been able to attend the course at all. The college were very unhelpful and unsympathetic when talking about this matter. All they kept saying was there was no budget for this type of care.” Parent