Annual review this afternoon

[LizK]

Adam's Annual Review (i.e. the one opportunity to challenge his speech therapy provision) is this afternoon and I've got major butterflies. If it wasn't for the whole speech therapy debacle it would be a quite benign affair. I didn't sleep well last night worrying about it and feel quite tearful this morning. Silly maybe but I feel if I can't get his speech therapy provision changed to waht he needs then I'm failing him . At least I've got to give it my best shot. DH who is thankfully coming with me thinks nothing much will change and wonders why I am getting so worked up. I've got all Adam's reports ready, got the Code of Practice and as much ammunition as I can find but I know hubby is probably right on both counts but I can't help it. Just need to try to keep calm and not cry but still get the point over. Guess that's why hubby is going with me!

 

Lx

[Bagpuss]

Good luck Liz, I find these meetings difficult too, especially if you go knowing you are going to ruffle feathers. <'> <'>

[rach04]

im exactly the same before any meeting todo with j had 2.5 hours sleep before the last one.good luck <'> ><

[pearl]

How did it go Liz?

[caren]

Hope it went ok liz

[LizK]

 

and to me for getting so upset over it

 

I held it together until near the end before :cry: but since I've got home I can't stop. It was nothing new or what I didn't expect but still got to me. The SALT turned up her boss. We half expected this. We discussed his school provision all very positive etc and then moved onto the contentious issue of SALT. Got contentious. Such gems included

 

1) opening gambit that our parental report was so strong he had nearly treated it as a formal complaint. Wish he had done and saved me the effort. Anyway what does he expect, us to be all nicey nicey and not make any criticism in asking for increased provision

 

2) stuck rigidly to their recommendations (despite him never seeing DS). We agreed to compromise on the way they delivered therapy (incriect rather than 1-2-1) as long as we could have frequent contact (monthly) but there was no manoevre. You think we were asking for the moon

 

3) when I said the consultation model given by the previous SALT was rubbish he said actually it wasn't. What she gave was totally inappropriate, suitable for a baby or toddler If he thinks that is good then I dread tot hink what the quality of hte service is like. I didn't say the latter just felt like it.

 

4) DH challenged them on the importance of early intervention which he refuted despite the evidence for early intervention is well recognised

 

5) They kept maintaining Adam's needs were being met by this provision and not a resource implication until DH pushed him hard and he grudgingly agreed that they had to deploy a limited resource of speech therapists and fit in children's needs accordingly. If Adam was non-verbal he would be higher priority as he would have 'greater needs' and if he had an articulation problem he would get weekly therapy because it is deemed a bigger need and treatable . So we could be in the position where DS2 NT with articulation difficulties may get more direct work than Adam I think this is close to being a blanket policy, sounds discriminatory and certainly is against Every Child Matters

 

6) Wasn't listening to us and kept repeating that the independent report saying he needed speech therapy from an ASD therapist fortnightly was incorrect and were we influenced by that yet we weren't asking for that level of provision. Kept repeating how the model they work was the only way they would work yet we had already \greed to give it a go albeit with reservations.

 

7) The worst was that H lost his temper at one point and said how his patients complain bitterly about the 1 hour a term crappy SALT provision and he had the audacity to say that most of the parents he works with are perfectly happy. That is utter rubbish. Everyone at my support group has had SALT problems, we are just in the position of not having to fight the school or Education Dept so can devote time and energy to this. A report 2 yrs ago from parents of the local autistic society universally slated the SALT service.

 

I could go on and on though am now slightly numbed by the Going to try to forget about it over the weekend and then decide how further forward we want to take it

 

Thanks for listening

 

Lx

[Bagpuss]

Oh Liz, I'm so sorry it didn't go well for you and your hubby From what I've read though, you should be proud of yourselves for standing your ground...you were really up against it, take care <'> <'>

[pearl]

Sorry it didnt go well. You are right to fight - SALT was one of the main things that really helped my son. He was one of the lucky ones & got enough.

[Deedee]

<'> Hi Liz so sorry you didn't have any joy with the SALT today.I can't believe the difference in the provision from one LEA to another....I am just so damn lucky with that bit (it's just everything else here is c*ap but I'm working on that)

In our borough there is a real shortage of SALTs to work in the Bases attached to mainstreams and in the special schools..one ASD base has had no SALT for 2 years!! Ours comes under the mainstream team totally weird way of doing things eh?????

[LizK]

Thanks all for the tea and sympathy

 

Not sure how far we are going to take it but struck me last night that if we went to Tribunal it would be over a paltry three hours a year of provision! The cost to the NHS/LEA of that must be a couple of hundred quid a year yet how much will it cost them to go to Tribunal???? The boss SALT who came yesterday had obviously spent some time reviewing DS's case, that time could have been spent giving DS the therapy he needs instead. I guess though it is all precendent. If SALT did agreed to give DS more input they might have to do it across the board and the boss chap said that if the LEA did decide to amend the statement to give us what we request (and pigs might fly) they would refuse to provide it as they believe his 'needs are being met' and LEA would have to employ an independent therapist

 

Ho hum.............................

 

Lx

[Karen A]

Sorry the review was so stressful.I have come to believe in the last year that it is worth fighting for what you believe in.I am now regularly talking to parents who don't battle with the school or LEA because they do not know what their rights are or they do not feel able to make a case for their child.When we make a case for our children we may in the end improve things for others.

It is recognised that the use of blanket policies is unlawful and yet LEAs continue to be ''creative'' in order to ration limited provision.It is wrong and continues to be wrong.

 

I will get down off my chair now. Karen.