SASC

What SASC does

SASC (SpLD Assessment Standards Committee) is the UK national standards-setting body for the assessment of Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD), including dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADHD, and related conditions. Operating as a company limited by guarantee in England and Wales, SASC develops and publishes authoritative guidance documents, approved test lists (maintained by its SASC Test Evaluation Committee, STEC), and standardized diagnostic report formats that practitioners must follow for reports to be accepted for Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) funding and for Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) examination access arrangements. The Assessment Practising Certificate (APC) — the practitioner credential required to conduct SASC-compliant assessments — is issued through three partner professional bodies: the British Dyslexia Association (BDA), The Dyslexia Guild, and Patoss.

SASC's core "products" are non-commercial services: a public national register of qualified assessors, an annual conference, the Diagnostic Report Format (a new 2025 version becomes mandatory 1 January 2027), STEC-reviewed test guidance documents covering instruments such as WJ V, OPUS, BNST5, TORE, and PPVT-5, and an approved CPD course framework delivered by third-party providers. SASC does not sell directly to assessors or institutions; it provides guidance free of charge and authorizes CPD course content from providers such as Patoss and Praxis, which set their own course fees (typically £39–£160). SASC's technology footprint is minimal — the website (sasc.org.uk) is the primary delivery channel — with no public API, software product, or proprietary platform.

SASC's revenue model is effectively that of a non-profit standards body: it is funded through its company-limited-by-guarantee structure with no equity investors, no disclosed funding rounds, and no parent company. The entity appears to operate on a small operating budget supported by the consensus of its partner organizations, with expansion in scope (new test approvals, AI governance guidance, new report formats) financed internally rather than through external capital. Its "customers" — specialist teacher assessors, educational psychologists, universities, and schools — are indirect users of its standards rather than paying buyers, and the organization competes only in the sense that its standards are effectively mandatory for participation in the UK SpLD assessment ecosystem.

Name

SASC

Legal name

SASC Ltd., The SpLD Assessment Standards Committee

Website

https://sasc.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

SASC is the UK national standards-setting body for Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD) assessment, publishing authoritative guidance, approved test lists, and diagnostic report formats that practitioners must follow for DSA funding and JCQ access arrangements, coordinated through three professional bodies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Standards and Educational Assessment Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Dyslexia Screening & Diagnostic Evaluation (EDAKAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Professional Development / CPD Requirement Administration for Licensure (EDADAJAL), Teacher Testing & Examinations Boards (Licensure Exams) (EDADAJAC)

Keywords

• SpLD assessment standards
• Diagnostic assessment guidance
• Practitioner certification
• Continuing professional development
• Dyslexia assessment testing

Headquarters

HQ city

Evesham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Guidance Document Access: SASC provides guidance documents and assessment standards free of charge through its website, serving as a not-for-profit standards body rather than a commercial entity.
2. CPD Course Authorization: SASC authorizes and approves CPD courses from providers such as Patoss and Praxis, but does not directly sell courses. Course fees (£39-£160) are set by CPD providers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SASC (The SpLD Assessment Standards Committee) is a UK-based standards-setting body that promotes good practice and monitors standards for assessors and practitioners of Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD). It maintains a national register of qualified specialist teacher assessors, publishes diagnostic report formats and approved test lists, and coordinates with three professional membership bodies (BDA, Dyslexia Guild, Patoss) that issue Assessment Practising Certificates. The organization also authorizes CPD course providers and produces guidance documents on topics such as dyslexia, ADHD, autism, and dyscalculia.

Product overview

SASC (SpLD Assessment Standards Committee) is a UK-based standard-setting organization that promotes good practice and monitors standards for assessors and practitioners of Specific Learning Difficulties. Rather than a single software product, SASC offers a portfolio of services including: a national register of qualified assessors holding Assessment Practising Certificates; comprehensive assessment guidance documents and test lists produced by the SASC Test Evaluation Committee (STEC); SASC-approved diagnostic report formats; approved CPD courses and qualifications; and downloadable guidance on various SpLD-related topics including ADHD, autism, and maths difficulties. The organization facilitates the assessment ecosystem for dyslexia and other SpLDs in the UK through standards-setting, guidance publication, and professional development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• National Register of Qualified Assessors A publicly accessible searchable list of professionally qualified specialist teacher assessors holding current Assessment Practising Certificates (APCs), maintained by SASC for students, parents, schools, and universities seeking qualified SpLD assessors.
• Assessment Practising Certificate (APC) A professional certification, issued by BDA, Dyslexia Guild, and Patoss in accordance with SASC standards, that recognizes specialist teachers' qualifications and continuing professional development for conducting SpLD diagnostic assessments. APC holders must maintain membership in their issuing professional body for their certificate to remain valid.
• SASC/STEC Test Guidance Documents Guidance documents produced by the SASC Test Evaluation Committee (STEC) on assessment tests suitable for SpLD practitioners, covering the administration, scoring, and interpretation of approved tests for use in diagnostic assessments.
• SASC List of Suitable Tests Regularly updated test lists produced by STEC for the assessment of Specific Learning Difficulties, reviewed annually, covering tests suitable for pre-16 and post-16 learners, including new test approvals such as WJ V, OPUS, TORE, and PPVT-5.
• Diagnostic Assessment Report Format SASC-approved report formats for diagnostic assessment of SpLDs, including the 2025 format required for use from January 2027, with guidance documents for assessors to produce standardized, SASC-compliant diagnostic reports.
• APEL Routes for Experienced Maths Assessors Assessment of Prior Experience and Learning (APEL) routes opened by the three Professional Bodies for experienced assessors of maths learning difficulties/dyscalculia who hold an APC but lack a formal maths qualification, enabling them to gain formal recognition.
• SASC Guidance and Archive Documents Repository of SASC guidance documents including ADHD guidance, autism guidance, CPD guidelines, dyslexia consultation papers, AI guidance for assessors, and archived AGM minutes and chair reports, freely available for SpLD practitioners and stakeholders.
• SASC-Approved CPD Courses and Events SASC-approved continuing professional development courses and events suitable for qualified SpLD practitioners, provided by organizations such as Patoss and Praxis, covering topics including Tests of Dyslexia (TOD), CTOPP-2, orthographic difficulties, and working memory.
• Approved SpLD Qualifications Information on SpLD training courses approved by SASC which lead to accredited practitioner status, providing a pathway for specialist teachers to qualify for SpLD assessment practice and APC eligibility.

Quantifiable outcome

• SASC-compliant reports are required for Disabled Students' Allowance eligibility
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• British Dyslexia Association (BDA)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBDA is one of three professional bodies that issue Assessment Practising Certificates (APCs) for qualified SpLD assessors. APC holders must maintain BDA membership for their certificate to remain valid.
• The Dyslexia GuildcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Dyslexia Guild issues APCs to qualified specialist teacher assessors and supports SASC's standards implementation. Assessors must maintain membership for APC validity.
• PatosscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPatoss is an APC issuing body and approved CPD provider. They deliver SASC-authorized training courses including comprehensive training on assessment tools like the Tests of Dyslexia (TOD).
• SASC Test Evaluation Committee (STEC)coreOthersSTEC is SASC's subcommittee that reviews assessment tests and publishes guidance. STEC regularly reviews tests for age appropriateness, standardization, and SpLD identification criteria.
• Specific Learning Difficulties Network (SLDN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDN is headed by Michelle Luciano (Edinburgh University) and Sylvia Parrachini (St Andrews University). The network prioritizes achieving agreement over definitions of SpLDs and supports SASC's consultation work.
• Delphi Consensus Study PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed by Professor Maggie Snowling (Oxford), Professor Julia Carroll (Coventry), Paul Thompson (Warwick), and SASC leadership. A 60+ participant consensus study on dyslexia definition and identification criteria.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• British Psychological Society (BPS): UK professional body for psychologists, including chartered educational and child psychologists who conduct SpLD assessments. Comparable as a standards-setting and membership organization for assessment professionals, though at significantly broader scope across all psychology domains.
• National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN): UK membership organization for SEND education professionals, schools, and settings. Comparable as a UK-wide SEND standards and professional development body with overlapping practitioner audience, though broader in scope than SpLD-specific assessment.

Regional players

• Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity: Major UK dyslexia charity providing assessments, training, and CPD for teachers and SpLD practitioners. Comparable in mission (dyslexia support and training) and overlapping CPD audience, though primarily service-delivery oriented rather than pure standards-setting.
• International Dyslexia Association (IDA): US-based non-profit setting dyslexia standards, providing accreditation (including for structured literacy programs), and supporting practitioners. Comparable in mission and structure to SASC, but operating in a different geography with framework differences (e.g., knowledge-and-practice standards).
• Dyslexia Scotland: Scotland-focused dyslexia membership and advocacy body. Comparable in mission to SASC's standards/practitioner-support role but restricted to Scottish practitioners and families rather than UK-wide.

Direct peers

• The Dyslexia Guild: The third of SASC's three APC-issuing bodies, providing professional accreditation and CPD for specialist teacher assessors. Directly comparable in role, scope, and audience within the UK SpLD assessment ecosystem.
• Patoss: The Teachers of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties organisation; one of SASC's three APC-issuing bodies and a major SASC-approved CPD provider. Directly comparable as a peer professional body serving SpLD assessors with training, certification, and guidance.
• British Dyslexia Association (BDA): One of SASC's three APC-issuing professional bodies and the UK's largest dyslexia membership organization. Directly comparable as a UK body setting standards and supporting practitioners in the dyslexia/SpLD ecosystem, with overlapping practitioner audience and policy engagement.

Emerging players

• Real Group: UK provider of SpLD and autism diagnostic assessments and training, led by SASC board member Dr. Mark Turner. Comparable as a clinical practice and training provider operating within SASC's standards framework, with partial overlap in CPD content.

Others

• Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH): UK-based professional body publishing research and CPD for children's mental health and developmental practice. Comparable as a standards-adjacent professional body producing guidance and training that intersects with SpLD/neurodevelopmental assessment, though with broader scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sasc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SASC