Sally44

I don't see a child as being a child first with autism added on. I see the child as autistic. Autism is pervasive and affects every aspect of language, social communication and behaviour. But that doesn't mean I am always allowing my child to get away with bad behaviour because he is autistic. I look at what happened, and I try, as much as I can, to get an answer from my son as to what he did and why. Many times, when the rules are explained to him, or he is told that a certain behaviour is unacceptable, he will comply because he likes rules. Sometimes the right way to do something has to demonstrated to him by his dedicated TA a number of times before he gets it right. But rules and routine help him make sense of things. However, alot of what school call bad behaviour is down to the school not understanding how the autistic child thinks. And every child will be affected by autism in different ways. Regarding the term 'aliens'. I spend more than 7 years living abroad and I know how it feels to be in a country where you don't understand the language or culture. And when you are in that situation you do begin to show autistic behaviours yourself simply because you cannot communicate. You seek one to one dialogue and not group conversations. You avoid conversations because you frequently misunderstand what is said to you, or you say something wrong and everyone looks puzzled or laughs at you. You cannot concentrate on a conversation for more than a couple of minutes because listening to a language you don't understand takes such intense concentration that after a few minutes you get a headache. You take their cultural sayings literally with bizzare outcomes! And you begin to seek out others like you ie. foreigners. Eventually I did learn the language, and I remember how happy I was when I understood the first joke at the time it was said (and not when I had processed it some 5 minutes later). So maybe 'aliens' is the wrong word, but I believe someone with ASD is a 'foreigner' in their own language and culture. Going back a year I had a problem in his primary school because, firstly they said that my son would not pay attention in class. In the school they had knocked two classrooms together and had divided it with only a curtain. So around 60+ children were being taught different subjects by different teachers and TAs. And although, as part of his diagnosis, it states that my son has Sensory Integration Disorder (which includes over sensitivity to noise), they seemed to think that he was at fault for misbehaving in class by covering his ears, getting under the table, banging his head on the wall, trying to leave the room, not following instructions. When infact they were at fault because they had received three reports stating he had SID and how it affected him. I had sent in a written letter stating that I thought it was inappropriate for my son to be in that classroom because he would struggle in that environment. So, in that instance, I was not prepared to allow them to dole out any punishment to my son for their ignorance. On another occasion, in this same school, the children would do different topics on different tables, and would move tables when they changed topic. This caused no end of confusion to my son because he always tried to keep 'his chair' and move it to the next table and would throw a tantrum if another child took his chair. Again I was called into school. At that stage I hadn't had the private reports I got later, and at that time he was getting virtually no support in school. I now know that he has Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder, Auditory Processing Disorder, is Echolalic, has Auditory Memory and Working Memory difficulties as well as SID and Irlen Syndrome, problems with some executive functions, difficulties with comprehension and inference. So, in the middle of this classroom chaos, was a child who literally did not understand a thing he was supposed to be doing and the only order he could get was to claim his chair and stick with that throughout the day - and they tried to punish him for that. Since I moved him to a school that has experience of teaching children with ASDs, and he is fully supported, and has the right amount of therapies from SALT etc, this behaviour (which I would put down to severe difficulties with language, rigid thinking and anxiety), has gone. If I had just allowed them to punish him I am sure I would be home teaching him now because he was so anti school that on many days I had to drive him to school and carry him through the door. That was not the behaviour of a happy child. And there seems to be this thinking that that type of behaviour is 'typical of a diagnosis of ASD', which I totally disagree with. Parents should not be left in a situation where their children are demonstrating bad behaviour at home or in school because school cannot do the job they are supposed to be doing. I don't completely blame the school. It is always down to LEA funding, but I am sick of having to swallow the LEAs latest educational craze or mantra as to what they think is right for my child. If I decide that an autism only school would suit him best, I would like one to be available. There isn't one in my area. All the special schools are slowly being closed down because 'inclusion' is the way forward. Well my experience of inclusion was that they didn't include my son at all. And if my son could 'learn' from his peer group (or his family for that matter) he wouldn't be on the autistic spectrum. My son used to get so anxious about things, that just the mention of the subject would cause him to vomit. He wasn't putting his fingers down his throat, or anything like that. It was similar to the fight or flight response, or the urinating when scared. He would throw up within a second. That wasn't learnt behaviour, that was fear. Thankfully that has now gone, which in itself proves the level of anxiety he previously had. Sorry, I seem to have gone off on a tangent and have just been venting. But I would love many so called professionals to come and live my life and then see what changes they would make.

To Westie: Have a look at Executive Function Disorder. I found a really good link previously, I think it was called school behaviour.com. And it listed all of the executive functions by skill, and it became pretty obvious how some children with these types of difficulties with find it hard to plan, organise, set goals, sequence, organise time - or even have an understanding of time. You might find it helpful.

That's brilliant. Now you need to make sure all his needs are in the Statement in section 2, and all the recommendations by professionals to meet those needs in section 3. Get yourself a copy of the Code of Practice and the SEN Toolkit - ask your local parent partnership where you can get these from. I don't want to bring you down from your high, but the LEA will try to put together a vague Statement that cannot be enforced and which doesn't really add up to anything significantly more that they currently do. Now the LEA/NHS SALT and Ed Psych will be asked to put together reports. You can try to get them to be more specific in their reports by sending them a letter outlinging what you feel are your sons difficulties and asking for them to make assessments and recommendations for these needs. So, if you think your son has good expressive language, but poor receptive language state that, if you think he has difficulties processing language state that, if you think he has auditory memory or auditory process disorder state that. If you think he has Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder state that. If you think he has Dyslexia and school have not assessed for this, ask for an assessment, or take your child to your local Dyslexia Action and have him assessed their and submit their report with your paperwork towards a Statement. In that way you have (a) evidence that you recognised a need in your child that the LEA/NHS professionals did not assess for, or ( they do include it in their report, but maybe don't specify and quantify how that need should be met. Get help from the National Autistic Society. That is what they are there for. They can read through your Statement and the reports and can advise you. You don't have to agree to the proposed Statement when that comes. You can get private reports if you feel it necessary. You can go to tribunal if the NAS feels you have a case to do so. The NAS do have a Tribunal service and an education helpline. The biggest thing to remember is that you need written evidence of need, not just your word, although parents opinions are taken into consideration. In the 'Proposed Statement' for my son, the LEA said that "XXX will need regular access to a Speech and Language Therapist." That means absolutely nothing. It isn't worth the paper it is written on. It is illegal. It doesn't say what kind of SALT will assess my son, how often the direct therapy will be (or even if there will be any direct therapy - there wasn't any prior to the Statement), that a dedicated TA will carry out the therapy on a daily basis, how much time this will all take, how often it will be reviewed. And there is no mention of the areas of difficulty my son has, and it doesn't say that the SALT will advise on IEP/MEPs and it doesn't say she will write an updated report prior to the Annual Review. If I had agreed to the above Statement I would not have been able to prove if the school/SALT were doing what my son needed, because it doesn't actually state what he needs. My Statement that the LEA agreed to after 5 minutes into the Tribunal Hearing (just for SALT, there is extra provision for Social Skills and supports during Playtimes and Dinnertimes) is:- "Provision for XXXX in school will include: XXXX will receive a minimum of 6 hours direct Speech and Language Therapy each term from a fully qualified and experienced Speech and Language Therapist, reviewed in line with the SEN Annual Review process. This equates to approximately twelve 30 minute sessions per term to be delivered weekly or as agreed with XXXX? parents and school staff in order to best meet XXXX? changing needs. XXXX? Speech & Language Therapist will compile a speech and language therapy programme to be delivered by a Teaching Assistant throughout the week on a daily basis, with the Speech and Language Therapist adjusting the programme as required following the speech and language therapy session that she has delivered. This session will be observed by a Teaching Assistant who will be delivering the programme throughout the rest of the week. In addition to direct therapy the Speech and Language Therapist will do the following: ? Observe XXXX? functional communication outside of therapy sessions; ? Liaise with school staff and parents; ? Be invited to attend the Annual Review and provide an updating report beforehand; ? Write notes, reports and treatment programmes; ? Contribute towards the MEP targets. This should take approximately 9 hours per term. XXXX? Speech and Language Therapy support will focus on the following areas: ? Speech - through auditory discrimination ? Extending Yiannis? Semantic development ? Developing his understanding of different sentence structures ? Extending narrative skills. ? Developing his Verbal Reasoning ? Developing his phonological awareness skills ? Social communication skills" I don't need to explain to you the difference between the Proposed and the Final SALT input. Obviously every child is different and has different needs and therefore requires different supports. But don't be afraid to go to Tribunal. It costs nothing (unless you get private reports), and find out exactly what the NAS can do.

I have heard of a behavioural system called 1-2-3 magic which is supposed to have good results. But i've not used it, just heard others talking about it. It involves a token reward system, but I think it also involves negotiating compliance rather than 'just do it because I said so'. In general I don't get behavioural problems with my son. But when he does have a real hysterical tantrum there have been times when I know that I have added to it, because I know that I should use a time out tactic as soon as I see that he is struggling to comply. And he might be struggling because I have asked him to leave a game unfinished, or turn off the TV in the middle of a programme, or I am asking him to make a choice and he can't etc. And sometimes, just sometimes I get so frustrated with it all and I just push him to do it right away, or make a decision NOW - because sometimes life is like that and you have to do what you have to do there and then. Anyway, it never works, it always escalates with tears and self loathing afterwards (on my son's part), and guilt on my part because I do know better. So, on a good day, if I ask him to do something and he refuses or is struggling, I negotiate ie. clear all your toys away after Chuckle Brothers. Then after that programme I turn off the TV and he does it. Or if he gets really upset he goes to his room to calm down - but not as a punishment - as a time out strategy. But generally, I think mums handle things much better than dads anyway. Your husband might feel that your son is threatening his authority, and your husband might need to try a different approach. As for mums - I never complain to my mum about my husband. To my friends, yes. But not within the family, it always comes back to bite you!

baddad: although I understand what you are saying, children on the spectrum devleop and change as do NT kids. Infact children can improve so much they lose a diagnosis. So what behaviour is applicable at one time may not apply a month down the line, or a difficulty might disappear, or a new difficulty appear. There are some children who do have a better understanding, and who may just be being naughty. But we really have to examine the child's behaviour and delve into what their difficulties are before we decide if they are being autie or nautie. And they can never have a 'perfect' understanding of the situation to the level that we do if they have a diagnosis of an ASD, because if they did have that level of understanding then they should lose the diagnosis. If the child is behaving badly because it makes other children laugh, he needs to be taught through something like Social Stories about how to behave in class. Can we expect him to understand why Tom and Jerry or the Chuckle Brothers is funny, but when he does something similar he is bad? We understand that they are two different social situations. Does he? (An example of something my son did - background info: we rent out a field and in that field is a pond). One Saturday he was in the field with his sister and two other kids from the neighbourhood. My son asked the other children to push him into the pond, and they obliged - even his sister! Now my son cannot swim, and luckily this pond wasn't that deepthat he could drown. But he did go completely under the water in November!!. When I asked him 'why did you do that'. He said he had seen it on TV and that it had been funny. So he had been trying to play with the other kids and make them laugh and he tried to do that by doing something he had already seen that he knew other children thought was funny. He didn't see that it was potentially dangerous. And interestingly, the other children (and his sister) did not think that they had done anything wrong because he had asked them to do it!

My understanding is that different councils have different policies and procedures. Some do statements, some refuse them. I've never heard of any that do good ones. But whatever your local council says or does is irrelevant because the Statementing process is a legal document. There is law behind it regardless of local council's policies. There is a Code of Practice and SEN Toolkit which states how a Statement should be put together and what it should/should not contain and how provision should be funded. Educational Tribunals go on Case Law, not Council policy. Some of the usual problems is the definition of 'education'. Many local councils will state that Social Skills, Occupational Therapy, Sensory Integration Therapy etc are not 'educational'. Case law takes a much wider view of what education is. Education is preparing a child to enter the world and be as independent as possible - therefore you need Social Skills in the outside world. 'Occupational Therapy is not an educational need' - or 'it is the responsibility of the NHS not the LEA to provide OT'. Any barrier to learning is a need and should be included in the Statement. The Code of Practice also clearly states that every need should be itemised and where a child requires a level of support over and above that normally supplied by the LEA, it is the responsibility of the LEA to meet those funding requirements and to make arrangements for that level of provision with outside agencies such as NHS. LEAs have to buy in outside agencies, regardless of their policy or budgetary limitations. That is why LEAs don't want Statements, or they want very vague and unspecific Statements. 'The Statement needs to be flexible'. No it clearly states in the CoP that Statements need to be specific and case law says they need to be specific so that a parent knows when the school/LEA are not fulfilling their obligations under the Statement. It says that 'any flexibility built into the Statement should be for the benefit of the child and not the benefit of the system'. So they cannot try to build in flexibility around staffing provision. They have to be specific about who does what and when. They can build in flexibilty around the pupil. For example they might prefer a termly figure of speech therapy eg. 6 hours of one to one speech and language therapy given by a qualified speech therapist with experience of ASDs. Because the SALT still has to meet those termly figures, and the flexibility works in the favour of the pupil. So if the pupil cannot engage during a session, or is ill, they don't loose that time of therapy as it will be carried forward. My son is currently receiving Listening Therapy in school (overseen by the OT) because I proved that he needed it as he has auditory processing disorder, sensory integration disorder. Both of these are medical conditions which the NHS either has to provide therapy for or they have to pay the fees of a private clinic. My son is the only child in our city getting that therapy. That is because I am clued up on educational law and what the LEA and NHS has to do by law.

If he was removed from one class to another because of inappropriate behaviour, the school should have strategies in place to address these behavioural issues (and they need to have looked at what happened prior to the behaviour - there will have been a reason for it), and those strategies should be in his Statement. If they don't have any strategies in place (or in the Statement) the school needs to contact the Ed Psych for her to speak with school and yourself, and for her to put together some programme or strategy, depending on the behavioural problem is. And again that should be in the Statement - THAT IS WHAT A STATEMENT IS FOR! They should not be able to do anything to your son that is not in the Statement. You say you have had the annual review. Have you signed that you agree with it? If not get this issue resolved and included in the Statement. I would want a written explanation of what has been the behaviour that intiated the move in the first place. And I would want school to explain to me in writing how moving him to a lower ability class is going to improve his behaviour. I would also ask them in writing if they have sought the advice of the Educational Psychologist. I would also put in writing that this is something that should be included in his Statement. That is what section 2 is for ie. what are his needs ie. he needs a behavioural programme in place, or he needs more support in class, or he needs more frequent breaks etc. In section 3 it should state how they will meet those needs eg. XXX will follow the XXX programme as recommended by the Ed Psych and this will be carried out on a daily/weekly basis by a nominated TA, and the Ed Psych will review progress on a termly basis, or a nominated TA will be working with XXX during lessons he has particular difficulty with eg. XXX and they will ensure that XXX understands what is expected of him and will check that by asking XXX to explain to them, in his own words, what he is supposed to be doing, or due to anxiety and stress being a particular difficulty with XXX he receive extra breaks during lessons that are known to cause him difficulty ie. XXXXX. I could go on and on, but you get the idea.

Also find out how to fast track the process because your son is 12. If he gets a diagnosis inside a year, then another year for a statement, you are looking at age 14. Some private schools go post 17. But you need to know what your chances are of getting a place in a private school. The less suitable LEA provision there is in your area the better.

As you have a good relationship with the CAHMS worker, ask them to put their concerns in writing to the school. My son was denied any support because I was told that he couldn't access them without a diagnosis. Then I found out that that is not necessarily the truth, because if an ASD is what everyone is thinking it is, then the supports can start immediately whilst he is going through the diagnosis process. It took me a total of 18 months to get a diagnosis. It is not 'reasonable' to expect a child with the type of issues your son has to wait that length of time before anyone intervenes with supports, strategies or therapies. Then another year to get his Statement finally agreed. As he sounds like he excels at certain subjects I would speak with an educational advisor at NAS to find out what the schooling options are. Chances are his problems in school are down to his diagnosis, as well as some lessons may be too boring for him. And the fact that he is gifted and actually excels in some areas may cause other mainstream children to pick on him. He needs a peer group that he fits in with. At 11+ that is usually the time that children with ASDs start to find the whole mainstream school process too difficult. Children are more accepting in the primary years. In secondary school 'inclusion' tends not to be the reality as mainstream kids have no contact with these children inside or outside of school. The children with ASDs are aware that they are different and have problems socialising and feel they are stupid. This often leads to low self esteem or depression or school refusal etc. It is a hard decision to make deciding whether to go for a mixed school ie. mainstream and ASD, or all ASD, or all gifted children. But by law the placement should suit the child and it sounds like his current placement isn't meeting his needs and he isn't happy going there. Find out from the NAS what your placement choices are. Get some legal advice if needed from a specialist solicitor. Find out from the local council about all the State school and independent schools in your area that have experience of ASDs or have programmes for gifted children. Then also look at the private school options in your area.

Have you contacted school to make sure there hasn't been any increase in bad behaviour, or being taken out of class, or have they recently discussed food in school. Have there been any changes in staff/pupils or environment etc. It might be around puberty, if he is concerned about body changes. Can you speak to a professional who could advise you on a book or video you could discuss together? If he is refusing explain to him how the body uses food. That might help him understand that he has to eat. If he has alot of sensory issues he might have times when he doesn't feel internal sensations such as hunger or thirst. My son can flutuate between the two ie. always feeling hungry and grazing throughout the day, or not ask to eat anything at all. If he does have some weight on him, see if you can find some kind of activity that he would enjoy eg. trampoline class, or rock climbing, or swimming, or martial arts. Small group and one to one activities tend to work better. Try to get an agreement between him that at every meal time he will eat something even if he doesn't feel hungry. I don't know if any medical condition could cause these symptoms, you could discuss it with your doctor if the behaviour is continuing. But the prospects of tests is often scary. Infact, sometimes if my son is refusing something ie. to eat or drink or wash or take medicine, or go to the dentist etc, I tell him that if he doesn't comply he will have to have tests done that might include a needle. Its cruel, but sometimes he is just so rigid that that is the only thing that works.

Two things I wanted to comment on is: Firstly what is he getting the detentions for. If it is anything associated with his diagnosis then the school needs to look into what they can do to address that rather than just hand out punishments. For example, a child might keep repeatedly try to talk to the teacher in class to the extent that they get a detention. However if the child has not learnt to wait, and waiting is part of his difficulties because he has problems with working memory or auditory memory and therefore feels he has to speak immediately or he will forget what he wants to say, then the detention is not right as he has a difficulty in that area. The Ed Psych and SALT should be contacted by school and some kind of support introduced, or a programme to improve memory etc. Secondly many children on the spectrum can begin to show bad bahaviour in class so that they get a predictable outcome. Anxiety is very high for these children and sometimes in class, if they are confused, or don't understand what they should be doing, they know that if they do a certain thing it will mean they are removed from the class and sent to the head teacher. Or if detentions are at break times, which is typically times when they struggle, they may again get detentions so that they can go to the library at breaktime for detention rather than having to go out and mix with the other children. Again this behaviour is due to a lack of understand and support in school. Or, as mentioned above, detentions might be fun places. He might feel other children begin to accept him more if he is naughty, these are all reinforcing bad behaviour, but for the child on the spectrum they might be getting some kind of social success for the first time through these bad behaviours. Also copying words and actions is common in those that are autistic because they don't have the social understanding as part of their diagnosis. The hear some words said, or see another child do something and they see what the outcome of that was. If they see a child behave badly because another child has said something to them or hit them, the autistic child is likely to copy that behaviour when something similar happens to him because he doesn't have the language or social skills to know of any other alternative. Alot of children used delayed echolalia. This can be words/phrases they have heard people say or from TV or DVDs, and they will use them in a similar emotional context. For example a child was put on detention for swearing at his teacher when the teacher had been insistent that he finished his work in class. The child replied "go to hell leutenent". When his parents found out, they know that this phrase was from a film he had watched called "the Dam Busters", and that phrase had been said when the captain had been pushing the soldier to do something he didn't want. So for the autistic child, that has problems with communication, that would seem like an appropriate thing to say as the emotions behind the two scenarios was the same.

You are entitled to take any evidence you have that supports your case. Professionals' advice should be shared. Ask your son's teacher to put her concerns in writing. Send a letter to the SALT requesting her to put in writing what statutory assessments she has carried out on your child, what the results where, what the SALT believes the difficulties/needs are and how school should be meeting them. List how your child has regressed academically and socially (IEPs being SMART is very important, as it should record regression in ability ie. last IEP child recognised 20 high frequency words, now recognises 13. Put in your letter that you have looked at ICD 10 and that your child meets the criteria for Aspergers. You can give examples of how you believe they fit the criteria. The other criteria is DSM IV - you can look at that too. Put in the letter that you are not satisfied with their service and how your child is being supported in school and how they are continually regressing academically and socially and that you will be seeking legal advice. Then see what happens. Also get in touch with the National Autistic Society. Also refuse to sign any agreements that suggest you are happy with your child's provision at school.

I was told the opposite, that requests by parents are taken more seriously than those by school. But, whoever sets the process in motion, it still means that everyone has to send in their reports and opinions, including the parents. The form they send to you to fill in does help you cover all the areas of concern. The most important is getting all your sons needs down on paper by the professionals that see him. You will receive copies of those reports. If you don't feel that they have done enough assessments, or have not gone into enough detail, then you have the right to get independent reports. Also speak with the NAS.org as they can give you alot of help and advice through their education helpline and their tribunal service.

I would recommend you contact the National Autistic Society. They will be able to give you relevant information for your area. I don't see how a private diagnosis could not be recognised. They have to recognise private reports, and these are always the best tools to use at Educational Tribunals. Just because you go private doesn't mean the professional is going to make things up! So check the facts with the NAS. In my situation I found that LEA and NHS professionals, and inclusion officers were lying to me about many things. And they continued right up until the Tribunal hearing, when they caved in and agreed to everything. I had private reports that proved what he needed in school and they agreed to the placement I requested as I had proven through the reports that that school was the only one that could meet his needs in our area. The National Autistic Society has an Educational service and a Tribunal service to help parents in your situation. A Statement is a legal document. The Tribunal always go on Case Law and not what the local council have decided is their in house policy. The Statement process has a Code of Practice which clearly states what a Statement could contain and how it should be worded. Regarding a diagnosis. Unfortunately a diagnosis does get you quicker access to things eventhough many professionals will tell you otherwise. But, again, any child with a Statement, which is a legal document, will have their needs (as itemised in the statement) met before any other child without a Statement or without a diagnosis. So, your child will get a second rate service without a diagnosis and Statement. Terrible, but true. Prior to the Statement I could never get any professional interested in assessing my son, or giving their advice, or attending IEPs etc. I was refused access to just about everything. So I started gathering evidence (written letters asking for assessments, letters confirming discussions teachers had had with me about my son, asking school why the Ed Psych had not seen my son for over 2 years, letters asking the SALT department to explain to me why in three years they still had not assessed my sons behaviour or social interaction difficulties, letter to my MP about waiting times, etc etc. In year 2 I requested that my son was moved to an Enhanced Resource school. A place had been promised to me if we felt that my son was not making progress. Then the Ed Psych told me that there were no longer any places available. The thought of having my son in that school for another year would have sent me mental. So I got the details of a solicitor that deals with special needs law through the NAS website, got private reports and went to Tribunal. I cost me my new kitchen. But he is now in the right school, and my life is no longer completely centred on trying to get someone to do what they are supposed to do with my son. He gets a higher level of support than any other child in his school and he is not the most severe. He is mainstream (Enhanced Resource), not in an autism unit. So speak with the NAS. Also speak with your child's paediatrician to see if there is a quicker way of getting a diagnosis. It might be quicker through health because they have waiting list targets. Education can take for ever.

You are being lied to. A statement is a legal document and the school has to provide the support itemised in the Statement. If they don't have the provision the LEA has to fund anything over and above what they can provide. And 'education' is a genereal term. It doesn't mean just reading and writing. It means social skills, friendship groups, life skills, sensory integration therapy, etc. Get in touch with the National Autistic Society and speak with their educational advisor. A statement has to be worded correctly and needs someone experienced to look over it. They should be able to do that for you. Getting reports that itemise your sons needs and what supports would meet those needs is difficult through the LEA or NHS, but it can be done, or you can get private independent reports from professionals who do not work for the LEA or NHS and who have experience of being expert witnesses at Educational Tribunals. Statements have teeth. Find out if the NAS is doing a seminar about the Statementing process, or ask the Parent Partnership the same thing. Get clued up. Order a copy of the Code of Practice and SEN Toolkit for the Statementing process. A Statement also gets you access to other schools that have experience of teaching children with ASDs. These can be a mixture of mainstream children and those with ASDs, or ASD only children. In the past i've been threatened, bullied, lied to, deceived by my LEA. I wouldn't believe a word I was told. I would want everything double checked. It sounds like the school don't want to do the extra work involved. I would seriously look into other schooling options that have experience of teaching children on the spectrum. If his present school are anti- that will mean you have to be continually on top of them to make sure they are doing what they are supposed to.

It is Ed Psych through the LEA/education (and advice into school on needs and recommended supports, and report trowards a Statement) and clinical psychologist through the NHS/health for initial diagnosis or other difficulties not associated directly with education eg. co morbid conditions such as bi-polar etc. I'm not sure if an Ed Psych can diagnose or whether they have to refer. The best option is to ask the GP for a referal to a multi disciplinary team that has experience of diagnosing autistic spectrum disorders including Aspergers. Then you know you are being sent in the right direction. Otherwise you can go private. Or you can contact the NAS for your nearest regional centre for assessing and diagnosing. Through the LEA/NHS it can take along time. Took me 18 months in total with another 2 years prior to that of being fobbed off by the Health Visitor and my GP.

For a diagnosis of Aspergers language development is supposed to be typical. However, most children with Aspergers do have language and communication difficulties eg. literal interpretation, problems with semantics or pragmatics, auditory processing or auditory memory. Usually the expressive speech is average or advanced. Sometimes there are problems with receptive speech.

Get in touch with the National Autistic Society and find out about your nearest centre that can diagnose autistic spectrum disorders and Aspergers. Go to your GP and ask for a referal, some referal times through Health are faster because of targets. Consider getting a private report from an Ed Psych. If you do, get a professional who is independent (doesn't work for the LEA or the NHS), and who has experience of attending Educational Tribunals as an Expert Witness. Write a letter of complaint about the waiting time to your Ed Psych Department. Send a letter of complaint to your MP. Refuse to sign any paperwork. Don't go along with their denial, start making waves. Also involve the Parent Partnership. Get a letter from your GP about your son's school refusal, anxiety, and anything else that is impacting on his health eg. depression, low self esteem etc. Make sure you put everything in writing to the school and always get their reply back in writing. . If they tell you anything or deny anything verbally, follow it up with a letter eg. further to our conversation about XXX you said XXX and I don't agree with this - etc. This is your evidence for when you go to an Educational Tribunal - you will be amazed how useful their ineptitude is, their denial, their lack of support, their ignorance - it will all work in your favour at the end. BY LAW the school has to meet his needs. If he is gifted with Aspergers you may be able to get him into a private school, and the LEA would have to pay his fees. It isn't easy to do, but it is being done by parents throughout the UK. Get some legal advice from an advocate that specialises in special educational needs law. Have a look on the NAS website through their link on resources and services.

Yes it is painful whenever you feel you have to lower the bar of expectations. However, I think you are right to think he is high functioning. An Ed Psych can carry out assessments, both verbal and non-verbal and performance based to see what his cognitive ability is. Then, obviously, the difficulties any child has on top of that are going to mean they have difficulties learning, or socialising, or navigating their way through the school or work environment. However to say their difficulties make them average or low IQ is misleading. If your child was blind, and couldn't perform well on any tests because she cannot see to read, then it wouldn't be said that she was low functioning. There is a big difference. There are many HFA and Aspergers adults at university, with their own businesses etc and they are brilliant at some aspects, and then may not be able to shop for themselves, or organise their wardrobe, or give a presentation. That doesn't mean they are low functioning. They are high functioning with difficulties that make it hard for them to perform to their cognitive ability.

If your child has a Statement of educational needs, all of his areas of difficulty should be itemised in part 2, and in section 3 it should say how the school is supposed to meet those needs eg. what professionals, what strategies or approaches, how often he does certain aspects eg. 2 hours per week on a computer programme such as XXX. And it should detail exactly what the Ed Psych is going to be doing eg. attend IEPs, write annual reports etc. If your statement does not contain such specific information then you cannot know if the school is fulfilling it or not. Get in touch with the National Austitic Society and speak with one of their educational advisors. Also find out when they are going to have a seminar about the Statement and what it should contain. Get a copy of the Code of Practice and the SEN Toolkit and read what should be included in the Statement. Many statements have been put together by LEAs to be as open and vague as possible. That is not what a Statement should be like. A Statement is supposed to resolve the very issues you are having. It should be very clear what the school is supposed to be doing, and if, in an academic year the gap between your son and his peers is widening, then that level of support needs to be increased. You are saying that you don't even know what his needs are? Also contact your local Parent Partnership as they too may do seminars about the Statement. I have pasted below a part of my son's Statement. "An individualised, multi-sensory and systematic literacy programme that will support XXXX progress with literacy. The programme must address his ability to read and retain high frequency words as well as developing word attack skills, spelling and handwriting. Activities must reinforce and support the application and generalisation of skills. A high level of ongoing assessment must be built into the programme to ensure progress is being made and skills retained. Assessment techniques such as Precision Teaching should be used. This will assist in measuring the accuracy and fluency of words that XXX can read and spell. The educational psychology service should be approached for training and materials if this approach is new to the school. If it is not used, the school must demonstrate how they intend to meet this recommendation. This literacy programme will be delivered daily, with sessions being short, 15-20 minutes, and focussed with additional reinforcement being delivered through relevant activities and games across the day. This will require a teacher experienced and skilled in teaching children with autism and language difficulties supported by a teaching assistant with similar experience. Progress made with literacy must be visible and presented at XXXXs? IEP and annual reviews. Assessment data and records should be reviewed after 6 months to ensure that XXXX is being provided with appropriate provision and that this is being effective in furthering his skills. To support the application of literacy skills, resources such as: - sentence builders - word banks using the software Clicker which enables words to be selected, listened to and manipulated - Clicker curriculum grids which enable support with the literacy content of the curriculum - CD-ROM story books which read text and highlight the words at the same time, such as talking books and schemes such as the ?Oxford Reading Tree Talking Stories? should be used. XXXX will have a handwriting programme that develops pencil control such as the Teodorescu programme or similar. XXXX will have a numeracy programme that is highly structured, multi-sensory and systematically builds skills. Activities will need to involve a high degree of visual and practical support with relevant practical resources. Additional drill and practice should be provided through ICT based software which will support XXXXs? motivation and interest in practising number bonds. Progress made with numeracy must be visible and presented at XXXX? IEP and annual reviews. Assessment data and records should be reviewed after 6 months to ensure that XXXX is being provided with appropriate provision and that this is being effective in furthering his skills. As XXXX is showing traits of dyslexia and dyscalculia advice should be sought by a specialist teacher for dyslexia/ dyscalculia by the school when necessary. A programme of activities to support the use of working memory skills developing both attention and strategies for remembering information delivered aurally. Again, software will provide a motivating and flexible way to support this." My sons SALT input is even more specific. If your statement is vague, you need to get it tightened up. Speak with the NAS about how to go about that. You say you have had one good Ed Psych go into school and give details on your son's difficulties and how they should be met. That kind of information should be in the Statement. If it says something like "school will get advice from an Educational Psychologist as necessary" - then the Statement isn't worth the paper it is written on because you have no idea if your son's needs are being met. Read the Code of Practice, it clearly says that EVERY need should be itemised, and that the Statement should quantify and specify in terms of hours (of support), and staffing arrangements (what professionals will be involved with your son, how often, what difficulties they will be working on and how they will be monitored etc).

As well as the Parent Partnership, get in touch with the National Austistic Societies Educational Helpline. They can help you get the wording specific in the Statement. Don't agree to it before an NAS professional as looked at it. The Statementing processes takes 26 weeks. You don't have to agree with it. You can go to Tribunal if you think the Statement does not sufficiently cover your child's needs (in either section 2 - needs, or section 3 - how those needs will be met in school). Again the NAS has a Tribunal service. If you are in the process of a Statement, then your child should still be able to go the special school. However do you know if there are any places left? Places are premium, and are quickly filled leaving vulnerable children with no other option than mainstream school. However, lack of educational places is not your problem. By law the LEA has to place him in a suitable school and the Tribunal can force the LEA to make another place, or the LEA has to fund a place at a private school. So don't believe them if they tell you there are no places available and you have to accept an unsatisfactory place. So you must agree to part 4 (placement) on the statement. If you are not happy with it, go to Tribunal (NAS can support you through this). The Parent Partnership and NAS also hold seminars about the Statementing process, so get in touch to find out when the next one is.

Get in touch with the National Austistic Society's Educational Helpline. What kind of school is your daughter in? I presume she has gone through School Action and School Action Plus. At School Action Plus the school has to invite outside agencies such as Speech and Language Therapist and Educational Psychologist in to assess your daughter. Their reports should detail her needs and how school should meet those needs. Unfortunately NHS and LEA staff do not tend to do indepth assessments because the more they find and identify the more it costs their department to fund the support they have recommended. From your post I would write to her Speech and Language Therapist if she has one, or the school and copy in the Speech and Therapist Department and request that they assess your daughter for difficulties with:- Executive Function Disorder (google it) Sensory Integration Disorder (google it, does your daughter appear deaf, or respond differently to sensory stimulus eg. easily distracted by visual things, problems with over or under sensitive hearing, problems with not registering pain or being touch sensitive, problems with balance or co-ordination or handwriting etc). Problems with auditory processing, auditory memory, working memory. Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder - google it. Expressive and Receptive language ability. Comprehension and Inference. Possible Dyslexia. Assessments for Cognitive Ability using verbal and non-verbal assessments. And that is just for starters? Have the SALT and Ed Psych done assessments in those areas? If you think she has difficulties in those areas then put it in writing to them and ask them to assess. Does she have a diagnosis of an autistic spectrum disorder? If not ask the NAS about the nearest centre to you that has experience in diagnosing ASDs. If you are hitting your head against a brick wall, and you have evidence that they have refused your requests for assessments, then you can go and get your own private reports. You need independent professionals who are not employed by the NHS or LEA and who have experience of attending Educational Tribunals as expert witnesses. Those reports should send you on your way to getting a Statement that is specific and quantifies what she needs in terms of hours of support and staffing arrangements. Go along to an NAS or Parent Partnership seminar about the Statementing Process. Get a copy of the Code of Practice and SEN Toolkit. Contact the NAS Tribunal service and go to Tribunal. If you have evidence in reports by professionals of her needs and how they should be met, the Tribunal will rule in your favour. The Panel follows Case Law and not LEA's own internal procedures.

Get in touch with the National Austistic Society's Educational Helpline. What kind of school is your daughter in? I presume she has gone through School Action and School Action Plus. At School Action Plus the school has to invite outside agencies such as Speech and Language Therapist and Educational Psychologist in to assess your daughter. Their reports should detail her needs and how school should meet those needs. Unfortunately NHS and LEA staff do not tend to do indepth assessments because the more they find and identify the more it costs their department to fund the support they have recommended. From your post I would write to her Speech and Language Therapist if she has one, or the school and copy in the Speech and Therapist Department and request that they assess your daughter for difficulties with:- Executive Function Disorder (google it) Sensory Integration Disorder (google it, does your daughter appear deaf, or respond differently to sensory stimulus eg. easily distracted by visual things, problems with over or under sensitive hearing, problems with not registering pain or being touch sensitive, problems with balance or co-ordination or handwriting etc). Problems with auditory processing, auditory memory, working memory. Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder - google it. Expressive and Receptive language ability. Comprehension and Inference. Possible Dyslexia. Assessments for Cognitive Ability using verbal and non-verbal assessments. And that is just for starters? Have the SALT and Ed Psych done assessments in those areas? If you think she has difficulties in those areas then put it in writing to them and ask them to assess. Does she have a diagnosis of an autistic spectrum disorder? If not ask the NAS about the nearest centre to you that has experience in diagnosing ASDs. If you are hitting your head against a brick wall, and you have evidence that they have refused your requests for assessments, then you can go and get your own private reports. You need independent professionals who are not employed by the NHS or LEA and who have experience of attending Educational Tribunals as expert witnesses. Those reports should send you on your way to getting a Statement that is specific and quantifies what she needs in terms of hours of support and staffing arrangements. Go along to an NAS or Parent Partnership seminar about the Statementing Process. Get a copy of the Code of Practice and SEN Toolkit. Contact the NAS Tribunal service and go to Tribunal. If you have evidence in reports by professionals of her needs and how they should be met, the Tribunal will rule in your favour. The Panel follows Case Law and not LEA's own internal procedures.

Get in touch with the National Austistic Society and speak with their educational advisors. They are sending you in circles. You don't have to agree with the SALT, and I doubt she has done very extensive assessments of your child to come to the conclusions she has got. If she has a diagnosis of an ASD she has language communication and social interaction difficulties. These needs have to be met. Unless the SALT is suggesting she is wrongly diagnosed?? What is her expressive and receptive speech like. Does she struggle to find the right words to say, does she use delayed echolalia, what is her auditory memory and auditory processing like, does she have problems with working memory, does she have Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder. What are her social skills and play skills like. Have they even been assessed? Does she have a Social Skills group or supports during playtime and dinnertime. Do they use something like Circle of Friends. Is the SALT even have a specialism in autistic spectrum disorders. If you reply no to any of the above, she hasn't done a thorough job. You can get private reports done. But make sure they are independent ie. don't work for the LEA or NHS, and make sure they have experience of Educational Tribunal work. Then watch the LEA run. Private reports do not make things up. But they will do all the assessments you want and will give an unbiased report that will state what she needs to support her. LEA and NHS professionals work to their departmental budgets. There is a big difference. And once you have evidence of what your child needs it has to be provided BY LAW. If the LEA don't have the staff available they have to BUY IT IN from outside professionals - no one will tell you that. So get in touch with the NAS to start with, and also your local Parent Partnership.

I am in the UK and don't know what the educational law is in Scotland. So I would advise you to contact the National Autistic Society and talk to them about getting a Statement of Educational Needs in Scotland - or the equivalent. In the UK the school has to meet a child's needs by law. Knowing exactly what those needs are, for them to be identified and itemised with recommendations against them is hard to get from any NHS or LEA employee because they run their departments on a budget that they have to keep to. In the UK, if your local LEA does not have a suitable school to meet all of your sons needs, then you can apply to a private school and the LEA has to pay the fees - no-one will tell you that! It isn't easy to do. But when you have a child like yours that is showing complex needs, is deteriorating in school, is self harming, needs specialist teaching input etc the cost for an LEA school to provide that level of service can actually work out more expensive than a private school. At an Educational Tribunal they will take into consideration all reports - and you can get your own private ones, and you can employ a solicitor or access the NAS Tribunal service. If it is all down to costs they will go with the cheapest option, which maybe private school. That is why it is important for every need to be itemised with a costing as to how that need will be met in school. Usually getting a private school place happens at around age 9+ ie. heading towards secondary school with a child failing at primary level. I was recently in exactly the same situation with my 7 year old son. Differing opinions - LEA wanted him kept in mainstream. LEA Ed Psych and Autism Outreach Teacher recommended Autism Unit (after 3 years of persuading me to keep him mainstream!). I felt that my son had some moderate to severe needs in some areas, but that he did have some social skills and did benefit from social interaction at this stage (by teen years that might all change). So I get a solicitor through the NAS website, private reports, and went to Tribunal and won everything we were asking for. It is important to get a full picture of his speech and language and social interaction skills - you need reports from independent professionals who do not work for the LEA or the NHS, and who are expertienced at giving evidence as expert witnesses at Tribunal Hearings. An Ed Psych should be able to tell you the cognitive ability of your child and what kind of school environment would best suit them. This is important because LEA schools tend to be either mainstream or special needs with children who have lower IQ. My son has high IQ, but learning difficulties including dyslexia/dyscalculia - severe receptive speech difficulties, CAPD, Semantic Pragmatic Speech Disorder, SID, etc. The LEA refused my son a placement in an Enhanced Resource school and refused to meet his needs. But, there is case law, and case law always wins over LEAs departmental procedures. If you get private reports done, one thing to consider is whether you want your son in a mixed setting or a special needs only setting. Then find the professional who agrees with your opinion so that they argue that case for you. I had a look around a wonderful school called PM poster for details It is private, and if at 9+ my son is still having difficulties and the gap between him and his peers is widening, I will go back to tribunal and try to get a place there. All the children have speech and communication difficulties associated with ASD, but many of them attain exam results and go on to be independent as adults. There is no evidence that inclusion works for children who cannot learn from their peers because if they could they wouldn't have a diagnosis of autism. Schools like PM Poster for details recognise the anxiety behind the disorder, and by removing them from a mainstream educational system that reduces their anxiety straight away because high functioning children are well aware of their difficulties and that they can't do what their peers do, that is why they tend to develop depression. They need a peer group they are comfortable with, not one that places hugh demands on them on a daily basis. If we were put under the same amount of stress/anxiety and pressure that these children are put under we too would develop depression and mental health issues. We need schools for our children that prepare them for life in the outside world. Many need explicit teaching of very basic social interaction skills such as initiating speech, holding a two way conversation etc - and mainstream schools cannot do this because they don't have the experience of expertise in ASDs. Name of school removed - against forum rules to discuss named schools or individuals. You need to exchange PM's if you want to do this - Simon