The government has approved changes that bar schools from cutting the lessons of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) by more than 50%, the government press office said. The changes are to the ordinance on inclusive education.
The press office said the rule stops these pupils' curriculum from being cut too much. If the support team proposes dropping a subject, it must give specific reasons, and a decision is made only after the parent has read them. The same requirements go into the ordinance on the curriculum.
Parents of SEN pupils will hand in their documents for Year 8 admission at the Regional Centre for Support of the Inclusive Education Process. They will no longer have to take them again to the Regional Education Department.
The ordinance also spells out more clearly how extra support for personal development works. Kindergartens, schools and special education support centres provide it. When a child needs more complex support, teams work with social and health specialists, and the text now describes this more clearly. The press office said the new rules on cooperation between institutions will give children fuller care.
Resource teachers work with children one-on-one and also in the kindergarten group or class. The press office said this helps children with SEN take part and be fully included in life at the kindergarten and school. Social workers help not only children at risk but anyone who needs support. The ordinance also describes their duties, and their place in inclusive education, more clearly.
The rules for screening three-year-olds in kindergartens for the risk of learning difficulties are also changing. The first step is to track the child's overall development with a special set of tools, which is still being developed. Extra screening for learning difficulties will be done only if the tracking shows it is needed. The press office expects the new rules to ease the work of teaching staff, allow more accurate tracking of development and make it possible to work in a more targeted way with children who need extra support.
Some wording and terms are being updated to match current law. The press office said the changes strengthen educational support, so that teaching fits pupils' individual abilities and works better for them.
On 28 May 2025, the then education and science minister Krasimir Valchev presented the first National Awards for Inclusive Education. He said that only through good partnership between parents, teaching staff and institutions can the big challenges in the education system be overcome, the ministry's press office said at the time.