Frizz Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Hi there. Does anyone have any experience of changing schools, less than a year into the first statement being issued? Even with a named LSA for 25hrs a week,my DD is still being excluded from school for agressive behaviour(mainly kicking). Ive looked at IPSEA web site & just about everything else I can think of & it would seem it cant be done. I tried phoning IPSEA,ACE & parent partnership & think I may have worn out the speed dial!! I have reached the point where I'm running out of fighting spirit & have faced up to the fact that DD may be better off in an ASD specialist school. DH wants to battle on at the mainstream,I am trying to win him round to the fact that we should do what is best for DD. There are many things about her school that make me very cross & despite odd training & advice days I am not convinced that school understand her AS. After a kicking incident on Friday I was summoned to the school &DD was still in the fiery phase of meltdown. The SENCO said she was displaying attention seeking behaviour. She is now on a 5 day exclusion! DD enjoys going to school, but on 'health & safety' grounds spends break & lunchtimes mostly in isolation. She isnt a violent child,she just becomes agressive when stressed or when she doent know how to handle a situation. Am I niave in my belief that an ASD specialist school would reduce these episodes because they would have more of an understanding & be less inclined to put her in situations that would make her prone to lash out? Oh, one last thing-do schools have to work on all areas detailed in section 3 of the statement or just the areas that they break down & put on the IEP? I'm a cross,upset mummy on a mission-if I'm not pro active I'll go insane. Would love some advice if poss please. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Daisydot Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) Hi Fizz - Oh dear, this sounds so familar. My DS had a statement for less than one year - and 25 hours 1-1. The mainstream school he was in clearly had no idea what his needs were, never mind how to meet them. How did we get the school name changed ? We asked the LA first, and when we were told we could not have the requested school, we used a very good solicitor, and we won. IPSEA are good, but as you said there are often problems getting through. I have to warn you the solicitor is expensive, but worth every penny because he has something like a 90% success rate. If you want me to PM you with the name, I can. I live not a million miles from your county and I know of a good independent ASD school, which I am not allowed to name on this forum. I firmly believe that some children with SEN are better off in specialist schools where their needs are properly understood and therefore the children make progress with their education, behaviour and self esteem. (Ive been banging on about this in my petition - see separate post on this forum). Good luck with whichever route you choose to take. Edited October 12, 2009 by Daisydot Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
anntham Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Hi Frizz I may be wrong but I believe that you can request an early review of the statement if your child's needs have changed, which they clearly have if the school is not meeting her needs and are not fulfilling the elements within Part 3. It is useful to focus on what the current school cannot provide or do for your child rather than what your choice of school can offer. It may be worth requesting an Educational Psychology assessment (if not done recently) this can be requested via SENCO It may also be worth contacting the National Autistic Society Advocacy Service who can advise on statement and tribunal issues. I personally have found them very useful. It is an answer phone service but a worker will ring you back within the week. My personal experience of aggressive or challenging behaviour is that it is usually linked to anxiety, difficulty communicating needs and lack of structure. It makes me cross when I hear attention seeking behaviour. Usually, our children don't hit out for fun there is usually a good reason for it, they should be trying to find it rather that excluding her from school. A little tip - ensure the exclusion is a formal one and is documented otherwise you may find it is denied later down the line (this happened to us). Sorry - it's not much to go on, but will be thinking of you and good luck. Take Care A x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Hiya Frizz Sorry to hear your daughter's education isn't working out. Changing schools with a statement is not simple. When the statement is a year old you can request a straight change of school, but that would at best only get you another mainstream school and no changes in the statement, so that is unlikely to be the best option for you. As anntham suggests, requesting an early review would be a good idea if you have the evidence to show that your child's needs have changed and that the school is not meeting them. The other option is to request a Statutory Reassessment once six months have passed since the original assessment for the statement. Again, you will need to demonstrate that your child's needs have changed significantly to warrant this - preferably with strong professional evidence. Unfortunately you can't go down the appeal route until the statement is amended in some way or the LA refuse your request for a statutory reassessment. To answer your second question: everything in part 3 of the statement must be provided or there's no point in having it in there. Contact the LA if your child isn't getting what's in the statement - they are responsible. K x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Frizz Report post Posted October 16, 2009 Hi, and thankyou to those who took the time to try & help me out! Had to squeeze in a positive note just to update on our situation. We had a meeting at school today & good old parent partership battled on our behalf for a representitive from the SEN team at the LEA to attend. DD's caseworker couldnt come,but his senior did!! Without going into all the boring stuff, it was agreed that DD can change school if that is our wish-Yahoo! We can look at a school with a department, an ASD school or another mainstream. I am delighted. The only challenge i have now is getting DH onside. He believes the school accepted her statement & the funding that went with it, so they should accept the challenge! We have appointments to view the ASD school & the department so I hope his attitude will change when he has viewed this provision. Wish me luck. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
anntham Report post Posted October 16, 2009 Thats really great - good luck with it all x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
