Statement refused - what now?

[fallgyrl]

Just got back from holiday (peed it down all week) to a letter from LEA saying that following J's assessment they think a statement is not necessary

 

It seems they agree with all the evidence from us, school, ed pscych, inclusion service etc that J has special needs but they believe his needs can be met from resources already in place. I feel so mad Although J in Yr 1 got 1 to 1 provision including lunch and break supervision, only 18 hours a week came from ESAP (or WPN 2 as mentioned by one of the reports - what is this?). I really dont know how the school funds the rest of the provision and can only assume that as J moves up to Yr 2, support from other TAs will be harder to come by as most support is concentrated in the Reception and Yr 1 classes. It was the school that actually began the statementing process following near crisis back in February when J's levels of stess and agression got so high he was faced with potential suspension. Instead, they put all the extra support in place and its worked ! J was far more settled during his last term and for once had hardly any incidents of agression against the other kids. Trouble is what gaurantee do we have that the school will continue to support him in this way (think I already know the answer to that one )

 

Its so frustrating and given that this decision has been made right in the middle of the school hols, cant contact the school yet for their feedback. I feel next move would be a meeting with them before deciding whether or not to appeal as it seems as if any appeal we make would rely on evidence from them, so can only wait now until term starts. We've got untill 9 Oct to appeal so hopefully will still be enough time.

 

Feeling pretty low right now. Does anyone else know of cases where it was the school who successfully appealed against non provision of a statement?

 

Vicky

[Annea]

Hi Vicky,

Firstly big hugs and take a deep breath!!

 

Many of us are have been or will be in the same palce you are.....

 

You see the LEA don't want to have to fund anything for our children's welfare and you only have to read the hundreds of stories here to know that it is finances and not our children that come first in the education system....

 

Now, all isn't lost....

What you need now is to decide to lodge an appeal...

This is where you go in front of a panel and prove that your child does in deed need extra help over and above what can be supplied in school without a statement.

 

I would advise you to speak to somebody as soon as possible to get your options straight, the appeal process in England is changing and I don't know the new rules, But where ever you live, their are strict rules and time limites for getting your note of appeal in and your evidence submitted.

 

I would advise tyou to contact IPSEA or another organisation as soon as possible. It is a very daunting process to go through alone (although many people do go it alone it's nice to have some support)

 

Don't wait till school restarts to take advice Vicky as although you might think that the school are on your side, sometimes they will side with the LEA when pressure is applied, and you will have lost valuable time. And I don't care what anyone say's a non statemented child will NEVER get the same help and provision as a statemented child <we were assured our daughter would>

 

When our statement was first turned down, we took the LEA to tribunal, and as soon as we did, the LEA backed down and decided to assess our daughter, unfortunately the statement was so weak it was useless so we are now back in tribunal appealing against the content on September 9th.

 

Remember all isn't lost, so take a deep breath and begin to document everything! Gather your evidence and do take advice. If you are on means tested benefit you might be able to get legal help and this is invaluable as you can get further independent testing and assessment paid for. If not their are planty of charities such as IPSEA who will help you with any questions you might have.

 

Good luck and remember ask loads of questions here as so many of us are going throught he same thing.

 

Anne x

[fallgyrl]

Thanks Anne

 

Ive now calmed down just a bit. Not quite so mad but just as determined to make sure my lad gets the support he needs. I contacted the LEA today and have provisionally arranged meeting with their Senior Assessment Officer (who was I think key to making the decision not to provide a statement) for mid September prior to the Appeal deadline. Will be meeting up with school before then so hopefully will start to build up more evidence of why school cant cope with existing funding. Someone from Parent Partnership should be getting in touch within next few weeks and I'll also contact Ipsea after the bank holiday.

Thanks for the advice about noting everything down - J is also currently going through diagnostic pathway and its very easy to loose track of exactly who is doing what and why

Hope your own appeal goes well. You're right to fight on given that vague statements just dont seem to be worth the paper theyre written on

 

Vicky

[Kathryn]

Sorry to hear this news Vicky. It does feel like a kick in the teeth, doesn't it? Chin up though, you've lost a battle but not the war, and it sounds as though you have good evidence on your side, especially if the school is saying that they cannot continue to provide the current level of support. Their support will be essential at tribunal as the case will centre on the details of the school's SEN resources and how they are used.

 

This is just my opinion, but it might be a good idea to put in your appeal anyway even before talking to anyone at the LEA. It sends the message that you're serious and are not going to go away, and can sometimes make them a bit more willing to cooperate with you. Starting the process doesn't commit you to going the whole way.

 

As Anne says, the tribunal system is changing soon but not until November, luckily, so if you go ahead, your appeal will be dealt with under the current rules.

 

Good luck and keep fighting <'>

 

K x

Edited August 26, 2008 by Kathryn

[fallgyrl]

Thanks for the advice Kathryn - the appeal is now signed, sealed and delivered

 

Just to update, I had meeting with the school yesterday to discus our 'plan of action'. J has been doing really well since Feb half term and has adjusted into Yr 2 with new teacher, new classroom etc with no major upsets but we all know that this is with a load more support on top of that provided by LEA through ESAP. The HT and SENCO are just brilliant and very supportive. They are pretty annoyed with the LEA (understatement of the year), particularly as they were advised to go for statement by the LEA's Ed Psych. SENCO has contacted the Ed Psych, who has always been very supportive and apparantly she is also very suprised at the decision not to provide a statement. School want to host the meeting with LEA officer, so heres hoping the LEA back down under combined pressure

 

Also had meeting with ParentPartnership Officer last week and although I was initially suspicious (after all they are funded by LEA), the lady I saw provided me with loads of info and was also very supportive. Actually said, after looking through case notes, that LEA position was really shaky, that lots of other LEAs provide statement for a lot less support than J currently gets through ESAP, that ESAP only meant to be temp so shouldnt be used for longterm conditions such as ASD etc. Anyway, gave me loads of ideas and confidence in going forward with the appeal. Everyone I've talked to so far says that it shouldnt even get as far as appeal as LEA should concede by the time it gets to the Disagreement Resolution meeting. Well I've not got through to LEA officer yet so hope to God they're right.

 

Will post again when we finally get meeting with LEA sorted. Heres hoping it will still be positive news...

 

Vicky