The statement process

[Joels_mum]

Our son was diagnosed last March, he was due to start early years foundation stage in the September. Since he's an August baby so young for the school year we decided to hold him back a year to give time for him to progress and to get a statement arranged. The statementing procedure was started in November and we still don't have it yet! I've seen various documents that will go into it so we know more or less what it will say but we can't nominate a school yet. Add to this that our LEA has no specialist schools or units so we will be applying out of county and it feels as though our chances of getting the right school are slipping away each day.

 

I hate the uncertainty. The worst thing about autism IMO is the bureaucracy it subjects you to.

[BethK]

Does your son go to any educational setting?

 

Has it gone to panel? Or is the application still sitting with the LEA/relevent person?

 

I think the not knowing is stressful, sitting around and waiting. Although, my son's application went through start of Jan and has been accepted (awaiting for his nursery to write a requested report before going further).

 

Wokingham borough council are very good with their processes, it also seems that we have a high amount of ASD kids/adults in our area. I spoke to social services the other day and they said that families actually move to this borough, basically because the assistance is very good.

 

Fingers crossed and good luck xx

[Joels_mum]

Does your son go to any educational setting?

 

Has it gone to panel? Or is the application still sitting with the LEA/relevent person?

 

I think the not knowing is stressful, sitting around and waiting. Although, my son's application went through start of Jan and has been accepted (awaiting for his nursery to write a requested report before going further).

 

Wokingham borough council are very good with their processes, it also seems that we have a high amount of ASD kids/adults in our area. I spoke to social services the other day and they said that families actually move to this borough, basically because the assistance is very good.

 

Fingers crossed and good luck xx

 

Thanks Beth, Joel has been in pre-school with an IEP for 2 years. Plenty of autstic children here in Cheshire East but no SEN provision.

[Sally44]

Our son was diagnosed last March, he was due to start early years foundation stage in the September. Since he's an August baby so young for the school year we decided to hold him back a year to give time for him to progress and to get a statement arranged. The statementing procedure was started in November and we still don't have it yet! I've seen various documents that will go into it so we know more or less what it will say but we can't nominate a school yet. Add to this that our LEA has no specialist schools or units so we will be applying out of county and it feels as though our chances of getting the right school are slipping away each day.

 

I hate the uncertainty. The worst thing about autism IMO is the bureaucracy it subjects you to.

 

So, have you put in a request for a Statement (or some other professional has), and the LEA has asked for reports from professionals involved (eg. Paediatrician, Educational Psychologist, Speech therapist, Occupational Therapist etc). Has the LEA written to you to say that they have decided to make a Statement?

 

If they written to say they are going to write a Statement, there is a timescale that by law has to be kept to. They have 26 weeks from start to finalising the Statement.

 

If they haven't agreed to produce a Statement yet, I am not sure what, if any, timescales there are to that.

 

But whatever point you are at you need the LEA to decide so that you can appeal if you need to.

 

Phone IPSEA.org, or the National Autistic Society.org, or Network81.org and get the proper advice for where you are in the process.

 

Your local authority will also have a Parent Partnership that you can speak to and who can give you help and support and go with you to meetings etc.

 

You should also have been sent a copy of all these reports. They are about your son.

 

Have you visited any schools, and have you decided on one yet? You need to ask the LEA what they have and visit it (mainstream and speccial schools), you need to get the LEAs own list of approved independent and non-maintained schools - there are lots of other schools that the LEA funds children to go to when they don't have suitable placements.

 

What have the professionals involved advised. They must have said something to you about school?

 

You need this sorted, because if they finalise the Statement with a mainstream school, and you feel that he would not cope there, and the Statement does not provide the level of support he needs, then you will need to appeal. And appeals are around 4-5 months from the time the appeal is lodged.

 

The longer they keep you waiting the more it works in their favour because by law you have to take your child into school regardless of whether it is suitable or not.

Edited April 2, 2011 by Sally44

[Joels_mum]

Thanks Sally, yes the LEA wrote to us in November to say they were starting a statement. I have seen copies of the reports from the Educational Psychologist, the SALT and pre-school evaluation. We filled in the forms we were asked to also. We went to see the first schools in the new year, both specialist schools in other LEAs (our LEA doesn't have a school or even a mainstream school with unit attached!) There was basically a balls up when our council was split a couple of years back and they suddenly realised after the event that all the autism provision sat within the other council's boundary.

 

The child development centre have recommended Joel goes to a specialist school; the only other option is that there is a mainstream school with 'resource provision' (basically a teacher, a couple of teaching assistants and a room) but the pupils are expected to spend 70-90% of their time in the mainstream classroom and there are doubts Joel could do that.

 

We were told by the out of county special schools that children in their own LEA have to be given priority for places so time is of the essence. It was the paediatrician's report that was holding things up but I believe that has been sent now.

[Grace]

Hi,

 

The COP says that the period from the receipt of a request for a statutory assessment or the issue of a notice to parents under section 323(1) or section 329 (3) to the issue of the final copy of the statement should normally be no more than 26 weeks.

 

At 16 weeks you should get a decision to make a statement (or not) and at 18 weeks you should get the proposed statement.

 

So basically, you are due the decision, depending when in November they started the process.

 

A non-verbal child would definitely benefit from early intense specialist input - in the right environment and with speech and langauge therapy, he could really come along.

 

Is he coping at his pre-school?

 

Grace/x

[Joels_mum]

Hi,

 

The COP says that the period from the receipt of a request for a statutory assessment or the issue of a notice to parents under section 323(1) or section 329 (3) to the issue of the final copy of the statement should normally be no more than 26 weeks.

 

At 16 weeks you should get a decision to make a statement (or not) and at 18 weeks you should get the proposed statement.

 

So basically, you are due the decision, depending when in November they started the process.

 

A non-verbal child would definitely benefit from early intense specialist input - in the right environment and with speech and langauge therapy, he could really come along.

 

Is he coping at his pre-school?

 

Grace/x

 

He's doing grand at pre-school, he's not at all fazed by the environment but he learns better in a 1:1 or small group setting. We're going to see one more school this week just so we will feel we have explored all options.

[coolblue]

I would strongly recommend downloading a copy of the SENCOP and reading the relevant chapters and referring to it frequently. There's a diagram on page 120 showing the timescale.

 

 

www.teachernet.gov.uk/_doc/3724/SENcodeofpractice.pdf

 

 

cb

[Grace]

He's doing grand at pre-school, he's not at all fazed by the environment but he learns better in a 1:1 or small group setting. We're going to see one more school this week just so we will feel we have explored all options.

 

The only reason I asked is that there are pre-school places at some special schools and you can get emergency placements there without a statement. Might be worth going back to the school with places and enquiring?x