Briefing: Research report - Learning difficulties

Only a third of Scotland's local education authorities have early years policies set up especially to deal with specific learning difficulties and dyslexia, according to a report for the Scottish Executive.

The new research, commissioned by the Executive's education department, found that policies and provision for children with specific learning difficulties and dyslexia vary widely across the country's 32 local authorities.

Nine authorities have explicit early years policies on dyslexia and eight have policies on specific learning difficulties. Only 11 authorities use a "formal process of intervention".

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh looked at the policies of all 32 councils and called for those without dyslexia/specific learning difficulties policies to make sure it is "explicitly covered in a sub-section of a more generic policy".