On-demand webinar

Identification, adjustments and impact

Name: Identification, adjustments and impact
Start: 2023-12-05T00:00:00.000Z

Dr Louise Karwowski and Aaron Crudge of Multiverse on identifying learners' needs, making adjustments that have impact, and carrying them through to assessment. Recorded in 2023.

Recorded · 5 December 2023

This is an older recording. Some of it is out of date: see what's still relevant and what has changed.

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Speakers

Dr Louise Karwowski
Former VP Neuro-inclusion Training, Cognassist
Aaron Crudge
Apprenticeship Support Executive, Multiverse

Identification, adjustments and impact

Dr Louise Karwowski, Director of Education at Cognassist, and Aaron Crudge, Apprenticeship Support Executive at Multiverse, share how a provider identifies learners’ needs, makes adjustments that have real impact, and works with assessment organisations to carry them through.

What we cover

What neurodiversity is
How to identify a learner's needs
How to make adjustments that have impact
Learning support funding and how it worked in 2023
Working with inclusive assessment and awarding organisations
Real-life examples of reasonable adjustments

For the funding rules as they stand now, see learning support funding.

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Recorded December 2023 · reviewed October 2026

What's still relevant

How a training provider treats reasonable adjustments and learning support as one connected process, from the start of the programme to end-point assessment.
Adjustments tailored to each learner (equity, not equality), reviewed as the programme changes, and carried through to end-point assessment.
Practical answers to audience questions, including how to check understanding for a learner with ADHD.

What's out of date

Who sets and audits the rules (from 21:44). It says the provider must keep a support plan available to the ESFA for audit. Now: The ESFA closed on 31 March 2025; apprenticeship funding rules are now set by DWP, and DWP and DfE may examine claims.
Review frequency (from 26:01). A monthly review with the learner is presented as part of the funding evidence. Now: The 2026 to 2027 rules ask for a review at least every three calendar months, the first one month after adjustments start, and allow a light-touch review for a stable permanent disability.
Evidence of need (from 31:16). It says evidence needn't be a formal diagnosis and that a self-completed screening can provide it. Now: Eligibility rests on an existing plan or a thorough, evidence-based assessment, and DWP guidance says not to rely only on an automated assessment.
What a low index means (from 5:12). It says a low score in an index absolutely requires reasonable adjustments. Now: An index score of 84 or below is in the below-average range and prompts a conversation about needs with the learner, rather than deciding adjustments automatically.
Ofsted (from 5:29). It links an accurate starting point to what Ofsted expects under the old framework. Now: Ofsted's renewed framework, in use since November 2025, grades inclusion in its own right on a five-point scale, with no overall grade.