Person-centred support planning in FE: a practical guide

Many support plans are written about a learner, by staff, in language the learner would not use. They list difficulties, adjustments and contacts. They are accurate, and often ignored. Person-centred planning tries to fix this by starting somewhere else: with the person.

This guide explains what person-centred support planning means in FE and apprenticeships, what the Code of Practice expects, a simple method you can use, and how to keep it manageable when you have large numbers of learners.

What is person-centred support planning?

Person-centred support planning is a way of agreeing support that begins with what matters to the learner, what they are good at, and what helps them, and then builds support around those things with the learner taking part in every decision.

The glossary entry on person-centred planning gives a short definition. In practice it comes down to four habits:

1. Start from strengths and aspirations, not deficits.
2. Use the learner’s own words.
3. Make decisions with the learner, not for them.
4. Keep the plan alive: review it, and change it when the learner or their circumstances change.

What does the SEND Code of Practice say?

The SEND Code of Practice 0 to 25 years is statutory guidance. Colleges must have regard to it. Its principles include supporting the participation of children, young people and parents in decision-making, and supporting young people to achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes, preparing them for adulthood.

The Code is also explicit that EHC needs assessments and plans should be person-centred, and that the aspirations of the young person should be central. For post-16 learners the Code expects colleges to talk to the young person about what they want from their education and how they like to be supported. Chapter 7 covers further education.

Two legal points sit behind this:

• The Children and Families Act 2014, section 66, requires the governing body of a further education institution to use its best endeavours to secure the special educational provision a student needs.
• Section 19 requires local authorities to have regard to the views, wishes and feelings of the young person when exercising SEND functions.

For disabled learners, the Equality Act 2010 adds a duty to make reasonable adjustments (section 20). A person-centred plan is a good way to record how you are meeting that duty for an individual, but the plan does not replace the duty. If you are unsure how the duties apply to your provision, take professional advice.

How is a person-centred plan different from a standard plan?

The differences are mostly in what you start with and who writes it. A standard plan often records needs and provision. A person-centred plan records the person first, then needs, then provision.

You do not need a new form. You need a different order of questions.

What is a simple method for person-centred planning?

Use five questions. They fit on a page and work for most learners aged 16 to 25 and for adult learners and apprentices.

1. What do people like and admire about me? Strengths, qualities, things I am good at.
2. What matters to me? Goals, people, interests, what I want from this course or job.
3. What helps me learn and feel okay here? Specific conditions, tools, ways of being taught.
4. What gets in the way? Barriers in the room, the timetable, instructions, the workplace, travel, other people.
5. What needs to happen next, and who will do it? Actions, owners, dates, and when we will check.

These map neatly onto an Understand, Agree, Deliver, Review cycle. Questions 1 to 4 are the Understand step, question 5 is the Agree step.

What does it look like in practice?

Fictional example. Marcus is 19 and on a Level 3 electrical installation course. A tutor has raised concerns about missed deadlines and poor attendance on Mondays.

A standard plan might say: “Marcus has ADHD. Extra time on written assessments. Tutor to prompt on deadlines.”

A person-centred conversation produces something different:

• What I’m good at: practical work, fixing things, helping other learners with wiring.
• What matters: finishing the qualification, then getting on an apprenticeship with a local contractor.
• What helps: one task at a time, written deadlines in a calendar he checks on his phone, working next to someone who is on task.
• What gets in the way: two buses on Mondays; long written assignments; being told about work late.
• Next steps: the tutor sends deadline reminders by text the week before; the timetable team is asked whether Monday starts can move to 10am; Marcus picks one portfolio task per week with his tutor on Thursday.

Every action traces to something Marcus said. The plan also contains a goal (an apprenticeship) that gives everyone a reason to keep going.

How do you involve the learner properly?

Involving the learner means they shape the plan, not only sign it. Some practical ways:

• Hold the planning meeting at a time and place they choose, with people they choose.
• Let them prepare in advance, using a one-page “about me” or a few questions sent beforehand.
• Offer alternatives to speaking, such as writing, pictures or a short video.
• Write the draft in first person where they want that (“I work best when…”).
• Ask them to read the draft and tell you what is wrong.
• Record where they disagree, and what happens next.
• Tell them how to ask for a change between reviews.

See learner voice in further education for detailed advice on the conversation itself.

How do you keep it manageable with large caseloads?

Scale comes from consistency, not shortcuts. Three things help.

Tier your approach. Not every learner needs a long planning conversation. A learner who needs one or two simple adjustments can have a short plan, agreed quickly. Learners with complex needs, an EHCP, or a transition between settings deserve more time.

Reuse what is true. Keep a bank of adjustment ideas and sample phrases, so staff are not writing from scratch. The adjustment ideas finder is a starting point. Always check that each idea suits the individual.

Avoid repeating the story. Make sure the plan travels with the learner between tutors, units and placements, so no one asks the same questions twice. This is a common complaint from learners and a quiet source of lost trust.

What are the common mistakes?

• Calling a standard plan person-centred. Adding a photo and a “likes and dislikes” box does not change who holds the pen.
• Making the plan too long to use. A tutor with 25 minutes between sessions will not read six pages. Put the essential points on the first page.
• Planning around the label. Two learners with the same diagnosis can need very different things.
• Treating the plan as finished. If it is not reviewed, it describes the person that learner used to be.
• Writing only for staff. The learner should be able to read, understand and own the plan.
• Ignoring what cannot be changed. Be honest about limits, such as awarding body rules or workplace safety requirements, and explain the alternatives.
• Oversharing. A person-centred plan can contain personal detail. Agree who sees which parts. See the guide on special category data.

A checklist for a person-centred plan

• ☐ The plan begins with strengths, interests and goals.
• ☐ The learner’s own words appear, marked as theirs.
• ☐ The learner chose how and where the planning conversation happened.
• ☐ Every action has an owner and a date.
• ☐ The learner has seen the final version and can ask for changes.
• ☐ Disagreements are recorded.
• ☐ Sharing is agreed: who sees what.
• ☐ A review date is set, with triggers for an earlier review.

For the writing itself, continue to how to write a learner support plan.

How do you plan with learners who are about to move on?

Transitions are where person-centred plans earn their keep. Whether a learner is joining from school, progressing to a higher level, starting a placement or leaving for work or university, the plan should travel with them, in a form they control.

Build in three habits. First, ask in the final term what the learner wants to take with them, and write a short summary in their words that a new tutor, employer or university can read in a minute. Second, ask the learner who may receive it. Third, agree what the new setting should ask them about, so they are not left to start from nothing. The transition information summary template is a starting point, and the guide on school to college transition covers the early stage in more detail.

For learners aged 16 to 25 the Code of Practice also expects providers to support preparing for adulthood, which includes employment, independent living, community inclusion and health. Ask about these areas in plain terms, such as “Where do you want to be in two years?”, rather than leaving them to the annual review.

How does Inclusion Studio support this?

Inclusion Studio is designed so that the learner’s voice, the agreed plan, delivery records and review sit in one journey. The support plans page describes the approach: a plan the learner has seen, with disagreement recorded rather than hidden. Inclusion Studio is pre-pilot. There is a clickable prototype with fictional learners, and the production application is in development using synthetic data only. The software supports your planning process; the judgement and responsibility stay with your team.