Menu Close

(1.33) What are related services?

(1.33) What are related services?

Related services are any services that are necessary to help a student benefit from her special education program. To “benefit from special education” has generally been interpreted to mean making meaningful progress toward meeting IEP goals and objectives.

Under federal regulations, related services include but are not limited to:

Transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education, and includes speech-language pathology and audiology services, interpreting services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation, including therapeutic recreation, early identification and assessment of disabilities in children, counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. Related services also include school health services and school nurse services, social work  services in schools, and parent counseling and training. [34 C.F.R. Sec. 300.34.]

In California, the list of related services (usually referred to as “designated instruction and services”) is similar to the federal listing. [Cal. Ed. Code Sec. 56363; 5 C.C.R. Secs. 3051 and following.] See Chapter 5, Information on Related Services.