FamilyFX: The Family Reset System
Local support in Highland

Additional support needs in Highland: making a wide-area plan work

The Highland Council is the education authority and NHS Highland provides health services. Distance, travel and service location can be central to whether support works in practice.

Sources checked 14 August 2026Next review 14 August 2027
An illustrated Highland loch with steep mountains, pine woodland and a white cottage beside the water.
Stylised illustration representing the area's character, not an exact photograph of a landmark or service location.

How support is organised in Highland

The Highland council area covers cities, towns, rural communities and islands. Families can be many miles from a specialist team, so location is not a minor detail to settle after a plan has been agreed. It is part of deciding whether the support is genuinely accessible.

Start with the nursery or school. Explain what the child finds difficult, where it happens and what already helps. Ask what can begin within the setting, which wider service is being considered and whether appointments or specialist input can be coordinated closer to home.

The Highland Council is responsible for education and publishes information about additional support for learning. Schools are normally the first route into planning, with education support services involved when the nature or level of need calls for them.

NHS Highland is the territorial health board for the area. Some specialist care may still be delivered from another location or by a visiting or remote service. The Highland Council also delivers some children's health and social care functions under the area's integrated arrangements, so families should note the name of the responsible team rather than relying only on the organisation heading. Enquire offers independent Scottish education advice.

FamilyFX local support signals

The local picture in Highland

This section maps the current health bodies serving this area and, where a comparable official measure is available, presents it alongside the national figure. It is not a rating of the area or the quality of an individual service.

Health

NHS boards for Highland

Territorial NHS boards plan and provide many local health services in Scotland. A particular assessment or treatment may be delivered by another team or through a regional pathway.

NHS HighlandCovers NHS Highland areaVisit NHS board website

Urgent help

Urgent mental health help in Scotland

NHS inform guidance for urgent mental health support. Call 999 if life is at immediate risk.

Visit Urgent mental health help in Scotland

Local organisations and advice

The Highland Council

Covers Highland

The council is responsible for education and publishes local additional support information.

Visit website

NHS Highland

Covers NHS Highland area

The board provides local health services, with some specialist pathways delivered elsewhere.

Visit website

Enquire

Covers Scotland

Independent national advice about additional support for learning and education rights.

Visit website

NHS inform

Covers Scotland

Use current NHS inform guidance for urgent mental health help; call 999 if life is at immediate risk.

Visit website

Services and local pathways

Additional support for learning guidance

Scottish Government additional support for learning

Official Scottish Government guidance about additional support for learning.

Who it is for: Children and young people in Scotland who need extra help to benefit from education.

How to access it: Raise the concern with the nursery, school or education authority and use the official guidance to understand the framework.

Check current details

Enquire advice for families

Enquire

Independent advice for parents, carers, children and young people.

Who it is for: Parents, carers, children and young people in Scotland, as well as people supporting them.

How to access it: Read the guidance online or contact Enquire for advice about a specific education question.

Check current details

Practical next steps

Ask for a plan that says what will happen between specialist visits, not only what the referral is intended to achieve. Record frequency, staff responsibility, review dates and how information will travel between school, home and health teams.

Check appointment location, travel support and the effect on the rest of the school day before accepting a recurring arrangement. Where weather, ferries or long road journeys can interrupt access, ask for a contingency. Remote contact can reduce travel, but it should be used because it suits the child and the task, not simply because distance is difficult.

Related FamilyFX help

Library articleSchool Support Scotland Wales Northern IrelandUse the correct Scottish education framework and terminology.Library articleSend Rights Scotland Wales Northern IrelandUnderstand how rights and formal plans differ across the UK.Library articleKeeping A Record For School And Gp MeetingsBuild a concise record for education and health conversations.
Help us strengthen this directory

Do you support SEND families in Highland?

If you are part of a charity, parent group, advice service, inclusive activity or another organisation supporting SEND families in Highland, we would like to hear from you. Send us your website, the area you cover, who the service is for and how families can get in touch. We check submissions before deciding whether to add them.

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Sources and checking dates

Local services change. We check the sources below and review any substantive change before altering the page.