Advice and support about learning, attendance and home education.
What does the Learning Access Service do?
The Learning Access Service helps children and young people access education and learning.
The service works with families, schools, education settings and local services. Its aim is to help children and young people get the support they need to learn, engage in education and achieve their best.
The service responds to the changing needs of children, young people, families and schools across Leeds.
Who is in the service?
The Learning Access Service includes the following teams:
How does the service help?
Each team provides specialist advice, guidance and support for children, young people, families and education settings.
The service works with partners across Leeds to help children and young people access education and achieve positive outcomes.
Contact details
Families can contact the relevant team for information, advice and support.
What does the Children Missing Education Team do?
The Children Missing Education (CME) Team helps children and young people who are not receiving an education.
The team provides:
More imformation:
https://www.leeds.gov.uk/one-minute-guides/children-missing-out-on-education
Contact details
What does the Elective Home Education Team do?
The Elective Home Education (EHE) Team supports families who choose to educate their child at home.
The team provides:
How does the team help?
The EHE Team works with families to help them understand their home education options.
The team can also support children and young people who wish to return to school.
The EHE Team works closely with other services, including social care and SEND services, to help make sure children and young people receive the support they need.
More information
Read the Elective Home Education One Minute Guide:
https://www.leeds.gov.uk/one-minute-guides/elective-home-education
Contact details
What is the Medical Needs Teaching Service?
The Medical Needs Teaching Service (MNTS) is commissioned by Leeds City Council.
The service supports children and young people whose medical needs affect their education.
For more information, visit the Medical Needs Teaching Service website: https://mntsleeds.org/
Supporting children and young people with medical needs
Children and young people with medical needs should be supported to take part in school life and learning.
Schools and education settings work with families and health professionals to understand a child's medical needs and plan the right support.
Some children and young people may have an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHP).
An Individual Healthcare Plan:
The plan is created together with the child or young person, their family, health professionals and the school.
An Individual Healthcare Plan is different from an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan. A child or young person does not need an EHC Plan to have an Individual Healthcare Plan.
For children and young people with SEND, education and healthcare support should be planned together where possible.
More information
Click here for more information about supporting children and young people with medical conditions in school
Changes to the Pupil Tuition Team (part of the Learning Access Service, within Children and Families)
The Pupil Tuition Team is now known as the Learning Access Teaching Team (LATT) and is based at Queenswood Education Centre (QEC). This team works alongside the Medical Needs Teaching Service (MNTS), with management and administration of the two teams being shared.
The team offers mostly small group teaching, with some 1:1 provision in a small learning environment, personalised to the learning and emotional needs of the young person. Teaching aims to break down barriers to learning and support reintegration via a short-term offer, with pupils accessing the curriculum through a combination of LATT engagement, learning strategies, and curriculum content from their on-roll school.
This service is available for children and young people who have a main domestic address in Leeds.
The team works closely with the pupil's school/academy and Area Inclusion Partnerships, as well as other service stakeholders including Social Care, the Educational Psychology Service, the Virtual School, and the Youth Justice Service.
The Learning Access Teaching Team offer
The team provides core curriculum teaching for primary children, and maths, English and science teaching for secondary children and young people who are not accessing their education for a variety of reasons.
The team may support students who engage in reintegration packages, having been out of school for some time, to help them gain the confidence to re-engage with their learning in mainstream provision. This may, under special circumstances, include those returning from home education who are on a school roll.
Expectations
Young people are expected to attend regularly and be able to manage their own behaviour within the calm, nurturing environment provided. LATT is a learning support service rather than a behaviour management provision; however, social, and emotional aspects of learning are supported through engagement and academic activities. Schools will work in partnership with the LATT team to agree learning objectives for each referred student.
If a young person does not attend, their place may be withdrawn, and all involved agencies will be informed.
Progress information is shared regularly with the referring school. Positive outcomes rely on strong collaboration between the family, school, and the LATT team.
At the end of the short-term intervention, a closure report is shared with all agencies, outlining work completed, progress made and attendance.
Referral process
The referral form is available via the MNTS website. Medical Needs Teaching Service - LATT Referrals
Any referral to LATT must be submitted to referrals.latt@eastsilc.org as directed on the website and will be considered at a panel meeting. All deadlines for referrals and panel dates are listed on the referral form covering the academic year 2026–2027.
Referrals are only accepted from the educational settings where the student is currently on roll.
The referral form, which must be completed in full, must include all the required information to enable an effective intervention by the team. Incomplete referrals will be returned.
The decision of the panel will be communicated to the referrer via a follow-up email, which will include a Curriculum Return form and a Safeguarding Concerns form. Both must be completed and returned prior to the Initial Planning Meeting (IPM).
School / Academy Responsibilities
Schools and academies will be invited to the IPM, which takes place at QEC. Parents/carers and the child or young person are also invited. This provides an opportunity for joint planning, sharing information and discussing curriculum priorities. LATT will provide regular updates to the named school contact. It is the school’s/academy’s responsibility to inform LATT of any changes that may affect the pupil’s attendance and progress, as well as remaining the main point of communication for the family throughout the offer. School/academy staff need to advise the LATT team as soon as they are made aware of a pupil absence so that attendance records are accurately maintained.
LATT uses Compass (Management Information System) for attendance recording. A login will be provided for two key contacts at the on-roll school, enabling schools to check attendance remotely.
Parent / Carer Responsibilities
Transport arrangements for all children and young people are the responsibility of the parent/carer, sometimes with support from the referrer.
LATT collaborates closely with parents/carers and maintains regular contact. Parents/carers are expected to ensure pupils attend all lessons offered and maintain communication with key school/academy staff and the LATT team. A central office number is provided for parents/carers to contact LATT directly.
What does the School Attendance Team do?
The School Attendance Team helps children and young people attend school regularly.
The team works with schools, families and education settings across Leeds to improve attendance and support positive learning outcomes.
Who is in the team?
The School Attendance Team has experience supporting children, young people and families with attendance concerns.
The team works closely with:
The team helps identify barriers that may affect attendance and works with families and schools to find solutions.
How does the team help?
The School Attendance Team provides:
When extra support is needed, the team works with families and schools to help children and young people attend school regularly.
The team also helps Leeds City Council locate children of compulsory school age who are missing education so they can receive appropriate support and stay safe.
Why work with the team?
The School Attendance Team works with schools and families to help children and young people access education.
The team provides advice, guidance and support to help improve attendance and reduce barriers to learning.
More information
Read the School Attendance Responsibilities One Minute Guide:
https://www.leeds.gov.uk/one-minute-guides/education-attendance-statutory-responsibilities
Contact details
What does the Exclusions Service do?
The Exclusions Service provides advice and support about school suspensions and permanent exclusions.
The team helps families and schools understand the exclusion process and what happens next.
How does the team help?
The Exclusions Service provides:
Contact details