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windylou

Statutory Assessment

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I have had a letter from the LEA to acknowledge a request for SA. When I sent the application letter it was very very long and I included any paper work I already had e.g. Diagnosis report, IEP's, and also documented any difficulties at home which would also have an impact in school etc. In the letter I have received it is asking me for copies of any reports I have, and details of my sons difficulties. Should I resend everything I have already sent? Also my son broke his arm last week and has been referred to pediatrics because it is an unusual break for a child (it would of taken a fall from a great height to sustain his injury but he did it by tripping over while running and landing on grass) should I mention this as supporting evidence re. possible Dyspraxia?

 

Thanks

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You really need a professional to say he does have Dyspraxia. Usually it is the OT or a Paediatrician. In our case the NHS OT said he has 'gross motor and fine motor difficulties', which she would not call dyspraxia. Then, on a visit to the CAHMS psychiatrist I told her this and she did some simple tests and put in her letter that he definately had difficulties typical of dyspraxia. We also had had a private OT report that detailed dyspraxia. So I wrote to the NHS OT asking specifically for her to say whether he did or did not have dyspraxia as detailed by CAHMS etc. She wrote back confirming the diagnosis, but also adding that the NHS do not provide any service for this - which actually helped with our preferred placement where he definately would get 1:1 OT therapy for Dyspraxia.

 

Regarding their request for reports etc. Phone them and ask if this is a standard letter they send out as you have already sent them all this information.

 

Did you detail reports/diagnosis via a schedule of contents. EG.

 

SCHEDULE OF CONTENTS

 

 

Letter of diagnosis xx/xx/xx Dr XXXXXXXXX, Clinical Paediatrician

Educational Psychology report xx/xx/xx Mr xxxxxxxxxxxx

Occupational Therapist report xx/xx/xx Mrs xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Letter re. Anxiety in school xx/xx/xx Mr xxxxxxxxxxx School SENCO

 

etc.

 

In that way they cannot say they have not received any documentation you enclosed - which my LA did try to do.

Edited by Sally44

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This sounds like a standard letter, some people don't send much info when they do the request and then they provide it all when they get a letter like this. If you have any more to tell them, then this is a good opportunity. But otherwise I would write a letter saying please refer to xxxx sent to you on xx - and list out everything sent to them (including your letter detailing difficulties etc), and maybe write a sentence to make it clear that you want all of these document to be used to inform the statutory assessment process.

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Yes, I am sure it will be a standard letter. The request to assess can come from anyone and I am sure will trigger the same response in all cases - so you will be getting the same letter you would have got and school requested the assessment.

 

As Sally says, the most important thing is to include a list of all documents you have submitted - and there is absolutely nothing wrong with sending the same document in twice. Many LEAs are known to okay the missing document game as a way of slowing up the process.

 

As far as the fall is concerned - I would not make too big s thing of it. The panel aren't going to decide he has Dyspraxia based on anything you say. You should be keeping a log of all significant incidents and this can form part of that. If your log shows a significant history of such incidents then you can argue it as a need without having a diagnosis.

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OK Thank you for the replies.

 

I did add a list of what had been sent along with the request letter but not as you have put it sally44, just wrote that I had included all reports from professionals involved with my son. I will re-send the info and put more details of what has been sent. What about a copy of a letter from the peadiatrician to the OT department outlining my sons anxiety towards written work and requesting an assessment for dyspraxia? I wasn't sure whether to include this first time. Sorry I have been given a date to send the info in and I just want to make sure I include everything I need to.

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I would certainly send that letter - almost any professional opinion is good, and one that mentions his anxiety and the possibility of dyspraxia is strong evidence. You should also use our parental comments to highlight the impact of these on his education (as I presume you've done)

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My experience was that I send everything in, and then send an email asking for confirmation that everything had been received - which they said it had. Then I received the Proposed Statement that had not included most of what I sent and the LA said that they had not received those documents. Then when I proved that they had received them, they said they were 'old' and 'out of date'. BUT it is about the 'relevance' of documents, not their age. You could have a letter giving a diagnosis that is 5 years old, and that diagnosis is relevant because it is a lifelong diagnosis. Obviously, the most up to date reports are the most important. But if the focus is 'on the child', all the documentation must be considered.

 

And the LA cannot pick and choose what information they want to use and cherry pick documentation that backs up their arguments. They have to consider all of it. Parents have the right to submit all of it - anything they consider relevant. Parents are part of the SEN process and their opinion and wishes are important.

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