The Supreme Court recognizes access to educational scholarships for people with ADHD without proving a 33% disability

37 associations of those affected by Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Spain, among which is the Associaciò ADHD Marina Alta (ADAHMA), filed a joint lawsuit against the Ministry of Education in September 2021 to avoid discriminatory exclusion that had created Royal Decree 471/2021 that requires students with ADHD to prove a 33% disability in order to apply for financial aid.

ADAHMA at the Associations Fair held in Dénia in 2020

Last week the resolution of the lawsuit was received in which the Supreme Court has recognized the group of people with ADHD access to educational scholarships, without the need to carry any disability accreditation.

The Federation of Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Deficit Assistance Associations (FEAA-DAH), advised by the Lawyou law firm, has thus received a favorable ruling to avoid the discriminatory exclusion created by Royal Decree 471/2021. A decision that for FEAADAH was totally discriminatory.

As established by the Supreme Court in its judgment, the court dismisses the administrative appeals because it considers that "in its opinion, ADHD, as described without any contradiction in this regard, can be considered included in letter A of section 1 of article 7 of Royal Decree 471/2021».

That letter A maintains that they will be able to "access scholarships for students with a specific need for educational support derived from disability or serious conduct disorder." In this sense, the sentence recognizes that "its sufficient accreditation, referring to ADHD, will be the key to obtaining them."

In Spain there are currently 415.000 children with ADHD and specifically around 20.000 could not aspire to obtain this type of training aid that is convened annually by the Ministry of Education for not having recognized at least 33% disability. For this reason, associations from all over Spain, including ADAHMA, appealed first to the National Court and then to the Supreme Court against Royal Decree 471/2021, considering it discriminatory.

"The Supreme Court has made it clear: it has dismissed our resources because it considers that ADHD, due to its needs and its symptoms, is already included in the first point of the Royal Decree," explains Maite Urkizu, president of FEAADAH. The exclusion of this group in the scholarships convened annually by the Ministry of Education continues to be "discrimination, in addition to being obvious, flagrant, which leaves the most disadvantaged minors at social, personal and educational risk and who without this help will not be able to have educational support. With this decision, the Ministry must include in its scholarships those who, with a scientifically accredited neurodevelopmental disorder, encounter economic difficulties in their human and educational development without having to have a disability or conduct disorder, "explains Urkizu.

In Spain the prevalence of ADHD is 5% of the child and adolescent population. "Of the 415.000 children in this country with ADHD, 20.000 have been left without a scholarship in these four years for not being able to prove a disability 33%, which does not mean that they do not need educational support," stresses the president of FEAADAH.

The affected families, through different associations and FEAADAH, had been requesting for many years that the Royal Decree be modified and that a fifth section be specifically added in which ADHD would be included. "As stipulated in the Supreme Court ruling, it will not be necessary to add a fifth section, since it has made it very clear that ADHD is included in the first one," concludes the president.

ADHD Marina Alta Association (ADAHMA)

ADAHMA is a non-profit organization that was born from the initiative of a group of parents with children suffering from ADHD in the Marina Alta in 2011. Its objective is to grow in activities, projects and programs, in addition to carry out work to disseminate the problem of ADHD and thus bring it closer to those professionals who can help them.

Its services are: differential diagnosis, neurodiversity, therapeutic intervention plan, family counseling, vocational guidance, school reinforcement, school for parents, activities and workshops.