concernedmummy Report post Posted October 8, 2009 Just thought I would post about how fabulous the Portage service is!! I have just had our first visit from the portage lady and the ed psych, they were both absolutely fantastic with my ds, he had a ball. The portage lady will be coming every 2 weeks to help ds and also to teach me to help him which is really great as that is what I really felt we needed. I had never heard of this service before and I am very impressed!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted October 8, 2009 That's great news, concernedmummy! For those who don't know, Portage is a system of home based education for preschool children with additional needs. http://www.portage.org.uk/ K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
concernedmummy Report post Posted October 8, 2009 Thanks for posting the link Kathryn, I hope that anyone with little ones with a suspected ASD can access the service, or even ask about it if it hasn't been offered. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NobbyNobbs Report post Posted October 8, 2009 sorry to highjack but is portage for diagnosed additional needs or can it be behavioural (non-ADHD) etc and general developmental delay? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
concernedmummy Report post Posted October 8, 2009 From how I understand it the service is for any pre school child with learning delays, their website explains it more! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baddad Report post Posted October 8, 2009 A word of caution... Portage is an excellent service and the home visits are great, but the weekly groups can be less positive When my son first accessed the service at around 2 1/2 - 3 he was quite 'high spirited', something i know many of you with younger kids will identify with. Our local group had a high percentage of kids with Downs Syndrome who were often quite petite, and many of the parents were a little overprotective. What with Ben being on the 98th percentile, having ADHD as a comorbid and no interest whatsoever in things like circle time it could be quite stressful. We persevered, and it did get better, but the mum's of the only two other autistic kids attending at the time both found it all quite upsetting and stopped going along... Obviously that's only my experiences locally, and some time ago at that, and I'm sure many groups manage the integration more effectively. The reaction of the other parents (of the down's children) was understandable in many ways so you couldn't really hold it against them, but feeling 'outside' like this in a group run specifically for special needs children can be quite upsetting. Oh - Another thing at this age that's well worth a reminder - Early Birds. I still have the video (now a DVD) of the Early Bird Psychologists home visits, and it's a real 'cockle-warmer'. L&P BD Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
concernedmummy Report post Posted October 8, 2009 Hi Baddad, group sessions have not been mentioned to me just that the service will be bi-monthly until he goes to nursery, and they have also said that they will help intergrate him into nursery. Can I ask what early birds is??? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baddad Report post Posted October 8, 2009 Hi Baddad, group sessions have not been mentioned to me just that the service will be bi-monthly until he goes to nursery, and they have also said that they will help intergrate him into nursery. Can I ask what early birds is??? Early birds is an NAS pre-school initiative. Usually run as a combined service with an ed psych, pre-school SEN service and S<. It's basically a service for parents of recently dx'd pre-school kids to learn more about autism and its implications and to learn strategies to maximise their kids potential. As part of the course, home visits are made and the children/adult interactions filmed for LOCAL group feedback/discussion. The biggest criticism I had at the time was a bit of an over-emphasis on PECS (it was the great white hope then), but I think that's probably less of a problem these days. L&P BD Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
concernedmummy Report post Posted October 9, 2009 Thanks for clarifying that for me Baddad, my ds has no diagnosis at the moment, but if he does get one prior to starting school I will bear in mind early birds. Just to say this forum is such an fantastic source of information that parents like myself might otherwise be unaware of, I thank God for you all!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thomastank Report post Posted October 9, 2009 Hello, I'm glad you managed to get Portage. I had it for a few sessions and the Portage worker took my son to school on his introductory days, it is an amazing service and I found it hugely supporting. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
