What action it is taking to increase the quality of education received by children with autism.

The Education(Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004(the act) came into force in November 2005 with the aim of creating a stronger,better system for supporting children’s learning. The act aims to ensure thatall children and young people, including those with an autism spectrum disorder(ASD), are provided with the necessary support to help them meet theirindividual needs and to help them make the most of their education.
In light of both the National Autistic Society (NAS) Scotland’s makeschool make sense report and the Her Majesty's Inspectorate ofEducation (HMIE) report Education for pupils with autism spectrum disorders reportan autism spectrum disorder (ASD) Education Working Group has been establishedto take forward the recommendations in both reports. The membership of thisworking group includes representation from NAS, the Scottish Society for Autism(SSA), the HMIE autism advisory group and Initial Teacher Education providers. Theintended outcome of this group is the production of a resource pack/tool kitfor education authorities (EAs) which will include: strategic planning forfuture service provision; guidance on the information EAs should be publishingfor parents, and guidance to schools.
Through initialteacher education and continuous professional development we expect allteachers to be able to fully support children and young people with autism inour classrooms.