Enhanced Support Base

Enhanced Support Base

Enhanced Support Bases are increasingly found in schools across Edinburgh. They support a maximum of 10 learners at a time in the base from S1 to S3, with a focus on supporting for Early/First level Curriculum for Excellence levels for young people who have learning and complex social communication needs requiring significant environmental adaptations eg. one teacher, small group environment. In almost all cases this will include those learners who have a learning disability or Autism, where their level of learning can not be fully supported in a stand-alone main stream experience.

Placing in the Enhanced Support Base (ESB) is decided by Edinburgh Council. It is likely that the process to seek a place in an ESB will begin for a child in P6 or P7, led in partnership between the child’s primary school and their parents and carers.

These enhanced provisions are located as part of mainstream secondary’s to support local children in coming to their local school and being able to have their learning needs met. Staffing ratios in the ESB are significant higher and the experiences within the base will be tailored to the young persons needs.

It is likely that for most pupils, they will spend a large section of their day in the base classroom. From there, and when appropriate, they might engage with a small number of mainstream classes or attend mainstream classrooms with a tailored small group experience, supported by the base staff.

Ms Stewart

Deputy Headteacher