Kazzen161

It is very hard to explain this when our children often see staying at home as a reward not a punishment (schools often don't understand this). Even NT children find it hard to relate to how things will affect them in the future. I think you have to use your judgement as you know your child best eg: if they really, really wanted to be a policeman/teacher/whatever, then they might understand the CRB bit or if they really want to stay in the school, then you could tell them that the school might refuse to have them back. When my youngest son was refusing to go to school, I had to tell him that if he did not go I would be fined or put in jail. That worked with him, but would not have worked with my eldest. The school and I agreed that R would not be sent home - he was sent to another class with lots of work, because that was a punishment to him. While he is at home, do you make sure he has a really boring time (no PC, lots of homework)?

I've just watched this programme, and I thought it was very good. My eldest son is learning to drive, and I can relate to the things the programme showed eg: the problems with the theory test. My son struggled with the hazard perception part, but he practised a lot and we came to the conclusion that we should try it and see how he got on. As they described, it involves lots of firsts, but the staff were lovely (they quickly sussed that he was a bit "different" - they even went to get him when he had finished, as he forgot to just come out). Amazingly he passed first time! He was very happy He has now done two practical tests and failed. The first one, he struggled with the examiner - he really could not tolerate her voice + it was all new to him. He failed the second one on a judgement call (whether to wait and possibly fail for hesitation or to go and possibly fail for being dangerous - he did the latter). He had problems with his first driving instructor, so we changed to another one recommended by a friend. This instructor has taught several people with AS and my son gets on well with him. The boy driving his car up and down the drive reminds me of my son. T has already bought and done up a Landrover - all he needs to do now is pass.

Also it is a lot easier to read something in a context so muddling up the words or the letters/phonemes makes it harder to read them. eg: you can guess a lot of words just by just knowing their first and last phonemes eg: br**d, especially if it is in a story/context. I am teaching phonics to Year 5s and the more I do it the worse my spelling gets. I am a good speller, but when you start to analyse words you start to doubt what you know is the correct spelling!

I would first check with the school what phonics programme they use and how far along it they have got (eg: he may have been taught the ea sound but not the ai sound). You don't want to confuse him by teaching him differently to school. The current thinking is that they should not be pushed into reading before they have learnt a lot of the phonic sounds. Letters and Sounds is the government phonics scheme, and if you google it you will get lots of resources/info for it. I think the most important thing at his age, is that he enjoys reading, so tell him the word if he is struggling to work it out.

I would agree with Kathryn - they are probably issuing the second statement in an attempt to address the points you will be raising at Tribunal. If they were doing this though, you should have been aware of what they were doing and have had discussions with them.

You should make sure that the Connexions person is involved, as they will be able to help ensure that he gets the help he needs at college. Even if he does not have a Statement, they can still write a Section 139a which states his needs. You will need to look round several colleges carefully, to make sure he picks one that is AS friendly.

Have you had any help from the Education Welfare Officer? They are supposed to help children with school phobia. Are there no mainstream schools with ASD units attached in Dorset? If you have a statement, then it may be possible to get you into an independent school that is more suitable for you. This may be a school that specialises in AS, or one that just has smaller classes and is more understanding. Your parents would probably have to do a lot of work to get you in one however. You might be able to get help from the Connexions service - they are supposed to help you plan what you want to do when you are 16 and what you need to do to get there. Your parents might be able to get help from the Parent Partnership people at your local authority's offices.

I was presuming you mean AO that goes into schools to give advice? You could try asking Parent Partnership at your local LA.

It may be that they will only deal with schools. I found out who at the LA was in charge of deciding which children could access autism outreach and contacted him direct, but I only found out by accident. Round here AO are staff from a particular school, but I don't know that you can contact them direct.

If the specialist schools are independent (not LA) then it does not matter which county they are in - they will be treated the same. It might make a difference when it comes to transport though (the LA would want to go for the closest one if it was a day placement, unless its fees were a lot more expensive).

Some independent schools include OT/SaLT/etc in their fee (so all children get access to it as and when they need it), others charge the LA extra for these additional therapies. Try asking the school. Sometimes fees are itemised in their prospectus.

You would need to check the cost for him to travel alone also, as there is no guarantee that the other child will always be going to the school (he could move or be in a higher year than your child). Do you know that the other child would be OK with someone else in the taxi? The LA will probably cost it as if your child will travel alone, but it is useful to know that another child close by goes too. I also argued that T would be expected to stay at the LAs suggested school til he was 19, but would be expected to go to college (which was not LA funded back then) at 16 from my preferred school. So it was 8 years + daily taxi and escort vs 5 years and fortnightly taxi and escort - which worked out cheaper even though the fees for my preferred school were many times more expensive than theirs's. LA schools often rely on the NHS to provide OT/SaLT (I don't know if they have to pay them), but they can then never guarantee that the provision will definitely/always be there. I would expect private ones to include an element of travel/transport costs in their overall fee.

Some independent schools have one set fee, others adjust the fee depending on how much help the child needs. Re: transport - I did the same as Kathryn - I asked my son's taxi firm how much they would charge the LA for a trip to the other suggested schools (it is less than what they would charge a standard customer). You need to add in the cost of an escort if one is needed.

If she is an NHS OT, then she is not obliged to do so. The LA are obliged to make sure he gets OT if it is specified in part 3, but they have no power over NHS employees. They would have to employ a private OT if necessary. If it is in Part 5, then no one has an obligation to provide it.

How is the learning support room set up - what does it offer? Extra support? A time-out space? Could he do whole lessons there? How will the 15 hours+ support be used? One TA or several? In all morning classes or in all english/maths classes? How would the OTs/Salts advice be implemented - in class or in separate session with TA? You need to have all the facts about this school if you are to build a good case against it. He does not have the right to be with children with similar needs (if anything the current thinking is that he has the right to be included in a mainstream environment) - though you know it would probably be good for him. You need to pick out all the aspects of the mainstream that he cannot cope with (hustle and bustle in corridors, school bell, lack of time to get from one place to another, no quiet place to go to when stressed, etc) and show how these will not be an issue at your preferred school. I am not disputing that your preferred school would be better for him, but you need to prepare a solid case to support your argument.

It should just state the total hours of support - what if the school decide they cannot provide any other help? Have the OT and EP written down that he needs small classes, etc? How small is small? 15? 8? Small group work is usual in mainstream primary schools anyway. A resourced base environment is generally where there is some sort of unit attached to a mainstream and the children go into the mainstream to a greater or lesser extent, with support from the unit. Some are very good. Are you sure the school the LA has named is not a resourced base? Are there really 35 in each class? - most secondaries round here try to keep the class size to 25-28. It does not matter that the school you want has all he needs and more (in fact that is an argument that the LA will use against it). The LA have to "use their resources efficiently", so they cannot justify paying for more than the child needs, so do not word it in that way. It is purely about a school being able to meet his needs as specified in his Statement, eg: if he needs OT and it says that in his Statement, that is fine - if it does not say OT in his Statement then whether a school offers it or not is neither here nor there to the LA. Although the school offers OT/SaLT/music therapy, it may be that your child will not be offered it unless it is specified in his Statement. Some independents charge the LA extra for that additional help and some just include it in the standard fee.

Try to split the task up into manageable chunks. - prepare your arguments for each aspect that is not stated in his needs - prepare your arguments for the provision required for each of the needs - prepare you case to prove why the LAs named school cannot meet these needs and to prove that your preferred school can. Include all his needs (social, academic, emotional, behavioural, life and independence skills). If you go to Tribunal and nothing changes, you have not lost anything. However, it is likely that you will gain at least some of your changes, if not all. His education does not stop at 16 - a Statement can help get the right 16+ education as well, so it is worth fighting for. Remember the LA do not have to provide the BEST school - only one that can meet his needs, so you need to prove that their school cannot meet his needs. Also remember not to talk about the school that you WANT - it is about the school that he NEEDS.

I would think that it is up to the school to provide it (you are parents of a child at their school, even if it is out-of-area). You could ask to see their Disability Equality Scheme and Accessibilty plan - which are supposed to take into account any needs of the parents/staff/governors as well as of the children.

I think if you are on JSA then they treat you as any other person. On ESA they will acknowledge your difficulties (eg: filling in the sheet) and help you to find a job. My son is on ESA and I can't say it has been a pleasant experieince - lots of delays and two medicals. He hasn't had his first pathways to work session yet, so I can't say if they will be as helpful as they say they will be. You should definitely speak to your DEA, and see if they can help you with these problems.

I would find out the facts first - it may be that it was a standard part of PSHE or that she was there because of a child with a different disability - it may have been by chance that the AS bit came out. If it was done with your son in mind, then yes, they should have discussed it with you first.

If they are keen to implement the things suggested then it could be worth it.. Do they know about the IDP? Info about ASD - but it is good. It was written for schools. http://nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/node/116691

Do you belong to the Surrey NAS branch message board? www.mugsy.org There are various talks/schemes run by them that might help with the social skills side of things. My concern would be that the visit might come up with several strategies for improving his social skills, but they would probably all involve TA time and possibly taking some of his peers out of their classes for a group - would the school support this? It might be better to spend the money on a more specific course (out of school).

I would start by going to ask why the register was not taken straight away, and how they are going to ensure your son does not get "lost" again. If no-one saw him go to the place, or noticed he was asleep there - he could have been there ill or hurt or bullied and no-one would have known.

My sons liked the Alex Rider series and the Darren Shan books (they are quite scary, so check first). The Horrible Histories series is always popular (and funny), and Dick-King Smith. The Usbourne Puzzle books are good too.

Surely the register was called immediately after lunch break?? Why did the teacher not know? Why did no other children say he was asleep outside? How come he could go to sleep in a place where no staff could see him? I think lunch time staff need to check he is in line to go in after lunch and the teacher or TA should certainly be checking he is in class after break. We have a few children we have to do this with. Usually other children tell us if one of them goes and hides. If it is a primary, they should be used to checking for children, as some of them will only be 4 years old.