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hi there can someone please give advice about the statement of educational needs, we have a 2 year old boy who is showing signs of autism and we are waiting for a appointment the referral has gone through, Liam goes to nursery one morning a week who are great with him, we are unsure with regards to a statement of eduactional needs as if we need to apply for one now or wait till liam is older

 

Any advice will be appreciated.

 

A and A

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I'm expecting that parents of younger children will post, as I only obtained a Statement for my son, which went to tribunal, and was finalised in February of this year. I first began raising concerns at age 3+, but he was finally diagnosed at 6 with an autistic spectrum disorder, and we finalised the statement when he was 8. So although that may not be the typical timeframe, that tells you how long it took us from start to finish!!

The National Autistic Society (and some times your local Parent Partnership) run SEN courses on the Statementing process. These are usually just day events, but it gives you a good background into the issues.

You can also phone organisations such as the NAS, IPSEA and ACE. I haven't had any contact with ACE, but the NAS and IPSEA can support parents through the Statementing process and they also have a tribunal service if you appeal against the Statement - or indeed if you appeal against any part of the process - as LEAs can refuse a Statutory Assessment, or they can assess and refuse a Statement, or they can issue a weak Statement - and at every stage parents can appeal.

You also need to have gathered some evidence before you apply for a Statutory Assessment. For children at school they have gone through School Action, School Action Plus, and have Individual Education Plans etc - and parents need to have at least 2 IEPs (which are usually termly).

I don't know what the process or the requirement is for younger children. Your parent partnership should be able to advise you on that.

You should also get a copy of the Code of Practice that accompanies a Statement because that will tell you what should be in a Statement and will also guide you as to how specific it should be.

I also found looking on the IPSEA website useful because they quote alot of case law (these are rulings made in previous cases that lets you get an idea of how a panel will make a judgement on certain issues.)

Parents on this forum have had very different experiences of their LEA. Some have had really good and positive experiences, whilst others have been less than negative. In my case my own LEA did not tell me what my son was entitled to and tried to deny him access to a suitable school placement and therapy. So, without sounding really negative, I would just advise you to find out as much as you can about the SEN process. And also check everything you are told via the NAS, IPSEA or ACE.

As part of the Statutory Assessment process (you or another professional can start the process by requesting a SA), if the LEA agrees all professional involved with your child will be asked to produce a report. Those reports are sent to the LEA for them to decide if a Statement is necessary. As a parent you can also produce your own reports or additional evidence if you feel it is necessary. When all the reports have been submitted the LEA will produce a Proposed Statement. It is very important that you get one of the agencies mentioned to check this Proposed Statement to make sure it is 'tight'.

Statements should be very specific in terms of hours of support and staffing arrangements during those hours. For example if it says your child cannot access whole school class learning environments and needs small group work, it should state what a small group is. Otherwise a school could place your child in a group of 15 children and say that that is their interpretation of 'a small group'. So if they need groups of 4-6 it should state that. etc etc. So you do need to go over it with a fine tooth comb as there should be no ambiguity or doubt as to who should be doing what, otherwise you would never be able to challenge the nursery or school on whether they were fulfilling the Statement.

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If you look at the SEN Code of Practice (downloadable from the dcsf site), it explains the process which is the same whether at nursery or school (Early Years Action, EY Action plus). Statements are only given to those chidlren who need them, so it may be that he never needs one, but it is also important to collect evidence along the way in case he ever does.

 

Are there any Early Year Centres in your area? These take pre-school children who have SEN, offer access to therapists and are good at getting Statements for those children who need them. Your Health Visitor should be able to advise you, and sign post you to things such as Portage.

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Hi A and A.

If Liam is assessed by a Child Development Team or a specialist team in your area with responsibility for diagnosing ASD then at the end of tha assessment process there should be follow up meetings.One of the follow up meetings should include discussion with you regarding proposals for future support.The future support should include plans for future educational provision,SEN provision,Statutary Assessment of SEN and other family support incuding perhaps a named professional to support you.

If a meeting is not scheduled to provide this information then do ask.

 

As Kazzen has said it would also be worth talking to your health vistor now.Portage,SALT,OT and specialist playgroup or parent and toddler groups may all be available to under threes who are undergoing assessment for ASD.Many of these services are likely to be organised and funded locally.So the health visitor is the professional who may well be aware of what might be available.

In my area the support group for parents of children with ASD is also open to parents of younger children awaiting assessment for ASD dx.It might also be worth investigating whether there is a similar group in your area.I have found local parents hugely helpful in terms of both information and moral support.

If the nursery is a LA nursery then there may be a SENCO who can offer advice regarding educational provision too.

 

I don't know whether you have ''Sure Start'' in your area.Sure start is part of government provision for 0-5 s and includes children's centres.Sure Start also offer services for children with SEN.

 

Edited to add.The NAS early bird scheme is excellent and will also probably include information re education.It would be worth requesting to go on the course if you obtain a diagnosis of ASD.A diagnosis is needed first though.

Edited by Karen A

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Hi A and A.

If Liam is assessed by a Child Development Team or a specialist team in your area with responsibility for diagnosing ASD then at the end of tha assessment process there should be follow up meetings.One of the follow up meetings should include discussion with you regarding proposals for future support.The future support should include plans for future educational provision,SEN provision,Statutary Assessment of SEN and other family support incuding perhaps a named professional to support you.

If a meeting is not scheduled to provide this information then do ask.

 

As Kazzen has said it would also be worth talking to your health vistor now.Portage,SALT,OT and specialist playgroup or parent and toddler groups may all be available to under threes who are undergoing assessment for ASD.Many of these services are likely to be organised and funded locally.So the health visitor is the professional who may well be aware of what might be available.

In my area the support group for parents of children with ASD is also open to parents of younger children awaiting assessment for ASD dx.It might also be worth investigating whether there is a similar group in your area.I have found local parents hugely helpful in terms of both information and moral support.

If the nursery is a LA nursery then there may be a SENCO who can offer advice regarding educational provision too.

 

I don't know whether you have ''Sure Start'' in your area.Sure start is part of government provision for 0-5 s and includes children's centres.Sure Start also offer services for children with SEN.

 

Edited to add.The NAS early bird scheme is excellent and will also probably include information re education.It would be worth requesting to go on the course if you obtain a diagnosis of ASD.A diagnosis is needed first though.

 

Hi there thank you for the reply, yes liam is on the waiting list to be assessed at the child development centre. Talking to my health visitor is not a great idea as we don't get on for the reason that we showed her our concerns regarding Liam showing signs of Autism but every time she insists that he is just delayed in development which we don't agree. Liams nursery manager has discussed with us how Liam is when he goes to Nursery and she feels that all is not how it should be with Liam, and our GP and the doctor we saw at the child development centre when Liam had his hearing test discussed with us that she has noticed general developmental delay, speech and language delay and sociocommunication concerns so she has sent a referral to the consultant community paeditrician at the child development centre. Liams nursery is great with him, Kerry the manager is the designated SEN and she has been a great support to us and Liamthey have identified his needs while there and they give him 1-1 care while he is there and they keep a diary of what activities he does and what his behaviour is like while at nursery. We have completed DLA forms and we have sent away forms for portage,and we are waiting for a appointment for SALT

Do you feel it is better to wait till we have had our meetings at the child development centre or to start a Statement of educational needs now. Sorry the message is so long just we are unsure what to do for the best for Liam.

A and A

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It can take up to 6 months to get a Statement sorted, so don't leave it too late BUT you do need to have evidence of strategies tried and that he needs to have more help than can be provided from the normal resources of a school/nursery in order to make progress. If he is doing well at nursery, there may not be a need for a Statement (children still get help without one and having a dx/ASD does not mean that he will automaticallly get one).

 

You could ask the nursery what they think. It may be that you need to wait til you get more evidence.

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Hi there thank you for the reply, yes liam is on the waiting list to be assessed at the child development centre. Talking to my health visitor is not a great idea as we don't get on for the reason that we showed her our concerns regarding Liam showing signs of Autism but every time she insists that he is just delayed in development which we don't agree. Liams nursery manager has discussed with us how Liam is when he goes to Nursery and she feels that all is not how it should be with Liam, and our GP and the doctor we saw at the child development centre when Liam had his hearing test discussed with us that she has noticed general developmental delay, speech and language delay and sociocommunication concerns so she has sent a referral to the consultant community paeditrician at the child development centre. Liams nursery is great with him, Kerry the manager is the designated SEN and she has been a great support to us and Liamthey have identified his needs while there and they give him 1-1 care while he is there and they keep a diary of what activities he does and what his behaviour is like while at nursery. We have completed DLA forms and we have sent away forms for portage,and we are waiting for a appointment for SALT

Do you feel it is better to wait till we have had our meetings at the child development centre or to start a Statement of educational needs now. Sorry the message is so long just we are unsure what to do for the best for Liam.

A and A

 

Hi.I think that places in Specialist Provision [such as in nursery or reception in ASD units ] can be taken quite early.So I think it would be worth keeping an eye on support in nursery.However I think the most important thing at the moment is that Liam is going to be assessed by CDC.A place in specialist provision may well be dependent on an ASD dx anyway.

As the nursery has a designated member of staff for SEN I think it would be worth asking that they start to document what support they are providing.Any record regarding the difficulties that Liam has and the sort of additional or different support that nursery are providing would be useful evidence.The diary would be useful for example.

Kerry may well have an idea regarding whether it is worth requesting a Statutary Assessment yet.Many children are not at nursery at two so having access to Kerry is very helpful.

Two is early to be thinking about Statutary Assessment.However if Specialist provision may be needed it may well be worth starting to plan early.Karen.

Edited by Karen A

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It would also be useful to find out what kinds of primary provision there are and go and visit them. In my area there is mainstream, mixed mainstream and SEN (in our area called Enhanced Resource) and Special Schools. You need to know the entry criteria to any ER or SEN place (it usually involves having to have a Statement, and sometimes it depends on cognitive ability as well). When you have visited these schools and have a better idea of where your child might fit in I would talk it through with the nursery (or talk it through with them before). Then you will all know what you are aiming for, and if there are any obvious reasons as to why that placement might not be suitable they should tell you.

From my own experience, my son started a typical mainstream school at 4.5 years old and it took a further 2 years before he got a diagnosis and another 2 years before he got his Statement. By the time we received his Proposed Statement and I was requesting an enhanced resource place in the LEAs only mixed mainstream/SEN junior school, all the places were taken up by the infants with ER places moving to that junior school. So we ended up going to tribunal about sections 2, 3 and 4 (section 4 is the placement). So I would advise that you speak with the SEN at the nursery about the minimum amount of time you need to gather evidence before you or nursery ask the LEA for a Statutory Assessment towards a Statement. Try to get as much information from the nursery as possible about the kind of educational environment they think might be best. I don't know if professionals can recommend a certain type of placement in the reports they produce as part of the SA - I hope others on the forum will comment on that. The professionals who did the reports for my son said that they are not allowed to specify the type of school a child needs (probably because there is a shortage of places anyway). They told me they could only talk about needs and how those need should be met.

And also bearing in mind that the process takes 26 weeks if everything goes to plan. And obviously you don't know if the LEA will agree to a Statement or not, or if they do produce a Statement whether it will be any good, or whether you will need to go to tribunal.

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It would also be useful to find out what kinds of primary provision there are and go and visit them. In my area there is mainstream, mixed mainstream and SEN (in our area called Enhanced Resource) and Special Schools. You need to know the entry criteria to any ER or SEN place (it usually involves having to have a Statement, and sometimes it depends on cognitive ability as well). When you have visited these schools and have a better idea of where your child might fit in I would talk it through with the nursery (or talk it through with them before). Then you will all know what you are aiming for, and if there are any obvious reasons as to why that placement might not be suitable they should tell you.

From my own experience, my son started a typical mainstream school at 4.5 years old and it took a further 2 years before he got a diagnosis and another 2 years before he got his Statement. By the time we received his Proposed Statement and I was requesting an enhanced resource place in the LEAs only mixed mainstream/SEN junior school, all the places were taken up by the infants with ER places moving to that junior school. So we ended up going to tribunal about sections 2, 3 and 4 (section 4 is the placement). So I would advise that you speak with the SEN at the nursery about the minimum amount of time you need to gather evidence before you or nursery ask the LEA for a Statutory Assessment towards a Statement. Try to get as much information from the nursery as possible about the kind of educational environment they think might be best. I don't know if professionals can recommend a certain type of placement in the reports they produce as part of the SA - I hope others on the forum will comment on that. The professionals who did the reports for my son said that they are not allowed to specify the type of school a child needs (probably because there is a shortage of places anyway). They told me they could only talk about needs and how those need should be met.

And also bearing in mind that the process takes 26 weeks if everything goes to plan. And obviously you don't know if the LEA will agree to a Statement or not, or if they do produce a Statement whether it will be any good, or whether you will need to go to tribunal.

 

Hi Sally. :)

Professionals cannot name a specific school during the Statutary Asessment process or at the draft assessment stage officially becuse it is up to the parent to state the school that they would like to be named.That is the official line in the COP.

 

However professionals can talk about the sort of provision that might be suitable and that parents might like to visit.

They can talk about the schools in the area that provide for children with similar needs.For example I asked ASD outreach which secondary schools they had pupils placed in.

They can also say whether there are any specialist ASD schools in the borough.

Basically if the LA is supportive then there are ways of obtaining the information from them within the rules.

In my experience though by far the best sources of information are other parents with children with ASD and information obtained by visiting schools and asking the right questions.

At the end of the day even a school that appears excellent on paper may not actually be as good in practice.Also what works for one child with ASD may not work for another even with similar needs.

 

I think that the main issue for A and A is that Liam is only two.

I have come across very few nurseries that would be able to request a Statutary Assessment for a child so young.

Also they may not be able to have enough evidence to request a Statutary Assessment until diagnostic assessments are completed by CDC.

I am not even sure regarding whether a Statement can be issued for a child as young as two.I will try to find out. :unsure:

It would certainly be unusual.

Statutary Assessment normally applies to current provision.So if a Statutary Assessment could be completed it could include provision for nursery or portage or parent support.I am not sure whether a school could be named for a child as young as two.Needs change so much between the age of two and school age that the Statement would probably not be relevant to provision for school without amendments anyway. :unsure: Karen.

However there may well be local systems in place for reserving places in ASD specialist units for young children that are recognised as needing a place.

The best people to talk to would probably be parent partnership or the current nursery.

Edited by Karen A

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Hi again.I have done a bit of reading to attempt to check my facts.The COP is pretty specific.Different rules apply to different age groups under the age of five.So it would be worth double checking [part 4: of the COP] with knowledge of Liam's excact age.

However broadly speaking.

Two is the minimum age when a Statement has status as provision that must be provided as documented.A statement can be issued before the age of two but more as working picture of support provided.

All early years settings in reciept of government funding must have regard to the COP.So a private nursery may not be included.

The guidance for early years settings is broadly the same as for schools.The nursery would need to show that support had been put in place at EY action and EY action plus.They would need to show that current progress is anedequate despite support.Over an extended period of time [usually regarded by LAs as at least two sets of IEPs].

The COP does allow for imediate assessment.However this would apply in very few cases where there are severe and complex neeeds and it is recognised that substantial support is going to be required throughout a childs time in school.

For children over two and under five it is recognised that it is a period of development.It is recognised that the Statement should be reviewed every six months.Karen.

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LEAs should note that parents of children under five and over two may express a

preference for a maintained school to be named in their child’s statement. The LEA must

name the school the parents name so long as it meets the criteria set out in Schedule 27

of the Education Act 1996. (See 8:58). A key issue is likely to be whether a school is

suitable for the child’s age. The parents may also make representations in favour of an

independent, private or voluntary early education setting for their child. If the LEA

considers such provision appropriate, it is entitled to specify this in the statement and if

it does, must fund the provision.

 

Taken from the COP.

As I thought even if a Statement was issued a school cannot be named until a child is three anyway. :) Karen.

 

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LEAs should note that parents of children under five and over two may express a

preference for a maintained school to be named in their child’s statement. The LEA must

name the school the parents name so long as it meets the criteria set out in Schedule 27

of the Education Act 1996. (See 8:58). A key issue is likely to be whether a school is

suitable for the child’s age. The parents may also make representations in favour of an

independent, private or voluntary early education setting for their child. If the LEA

considers such provision appropriate, it is entitled to specify this in the statement and if

it does, must fund the provision.

 

Taken from the COP.

As I thought even if a Statement was issued a school cannot be named until a child is three anyway. :) Karen.

 

Hi there Liams nursery are keeping a daily diary each time he goes to nursery, Liam will be 3 on october the 31st. Been reading what you have said and just have a question what is COP.

 

A and A

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Hi there Liams nursery are keeping a daily diary each time he goes to nursery, Liam will be 3 on october the 31st. Been reading what you have said and just have a question what is COP.

 

A and A

 

Sorry.Me and my jargon. :lol:

Code of practice for Special Educational Needs.The document I posted a link to.It is the education bible for all here. :) Karen.

Edited by Karen A

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Hi again.If nursery continue to document the information from the diary and write an IEP [individual education plan] and the diagnostic assessments with CDC are undertaken soon then you might be in a position to think about requesting a Statutary Assessment in October.

It might be worth attempting to obtain some information about schools before they break up for the summer holidays.

Requesting a Statutary Assessment yourself is an option.However if you request one too soon and nursery do not have enough evidence it may be turned down by the LA.

It is posssible to appeal or try again after a delay of six months however it may be better to wait until there is more evidence available. :unsure: Karen.

Edited by Karen A

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Hi again.If nursery continue to document the information from the diary and write an IEP [individual education plan] and the diagnostic assessments with CDC are undertaken soon then you might be in a position to think about requesting a Statutary Assessment in October.

It might be worth attempting to obtain some information about schools before they break up for the summer holidays.

Requesting a Statutary Assessment yourself is an option.However if you request one too soon and nursery do not have enough evidence it may be turned down by the LA.

It is posssible to appeal or try again after a delay of six months however it may be better to wait until there is more evidence available. :unsure: Karen.

 

we feel that Liam needs one on one at the moment as he pays no attention to anybody so when it comes to looking at schools in our area do we need to look at schools particularly that help children with special needs or mainstream schools as well.

 

A and A

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hi there can someone please give advice about the statement of educational needs, we have a 2 year old boy who is showing signs of autism and we are waiting for a appointment the referral has gone through, Liam goes to nursery one morning a week who are great with him, we are unsure with regards to a statement of eduactional needs as if we need to apply for one now or wait till liam is older

 

Any advice will be appreciated.

 

A and A

 

 

Hi again A and A, (and everyone else who has replied on this post!), I have been reading with interest as we are just about to start ds' statement (last term of reception year). All the info on here has been brilliant so thanks for all the links, it has saved me having to post!!!

 

I was advised to wait for my son's statement, he was diagnosed aged 3 and a half (HFA), just before he started school. Since he's been at school we have all learnt so much and his teachers have been fantastic. They have all attended Autism courses and there is an extra TA in his class purely to help him. She has been great and was a huge help in all the issues we had with toileting etc. Before we started school we were very nervous, we had told them that he would probably be diagnosed in the summer hols but that was all we knew. The school had no previous experience of Autism and because we didn't have a statement we didn't have a choice.

 

Looking back, I'm glad we waited as we know so much more now about our son than we did a year ago and we have so much more evidence to go on re statementing. I suppose what I am saying is that if you have a good school you can get an awful lot of help without the statement.

 

Your 'When?' question will depend largely on if you think your son will need a specialist school or mainstream. Maybe you could go and speak to your school and see what they think, do they have a close relationship with the nursery? My ds' teacher used to go and see my son in nursery during his last term to see him 'at his worst' and see what strategies were working for him. Portage were a huge help in transition to school and used to take him to school the term before he started so he was familiar with it.

 

I hope you get as lucky as we have been, good luck!

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Hi again A and A, (and everyone else who has replied on this post!), I have been reading with interest as we are just about to start ds' statement (last term of reception year). All the info on here has been brilliant so thanks for all the links, it has saved me having to post!!!

 

:thumbs: I will let you into a secret in case you don't know. :whistle:

Ben is in year 6.I have been very busy the last few years supporting him.

In the last few months Ben has made it very clear that he wishes to be more independent.

I have been made redundant.Which I should be really pleased about. :whistle:

So need something to keep me occupied. :oops::lol::lol:

 

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The professionals who did the reports for my son said that they are not allowed to specify the type of school a child needs (probably because there is a shortage of places anyway). They told me they could only talk about needs and how those need should be met.

 

Yes, they can't specify special or mainstream, but they can say "needs a calm environment, with small class sizes, a teacher with expertise in asd," etc, which points to a particular type of school.

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Hi again A and A, (and everyone else who has replied on this post!), I have been reading with interest as we are just about to start ds' statement (last term of reception year). All the info on here has been brilliant so thanks for all the links, it has saved me having to post!!!

 

I was advised to wait for my son's statement, he was diagnosed aged 3 and a half (HFA), just before he started school. Since he's been at school we have all learnt so much and his teachers have been fantastic. They have all attended Autism courses and there is an extra TA in his class purely to help him. She has been great and was a huge help in all the issues we had with toileting etc. Before we started school we were very nervous, we had told them that he would probably be diagnosed in the summer hols but that was all we knew. The school had no previous experience of Autism and because we didn't have a statement we didn't have a choice.

 

Looking back, I'm glad we waited as we know so much more now about our son than we did a year ago and we have so much more evidence to go on re statementing. I suppose what I am saying is that if you have a good school you can get an awful lot of help without the statement.

 

Your 'When?' question will depend largely on if you think your son will need a specialist school or mainstream. Maybe you could go and speak to your school and see what they think, do they have a close relationship with the nursery? My ds' teacher used to go and see my son in nursery during his last term to see him 'at his worst' and see what strategies were working for him. Portage were a huge help in transition to school and used to take him to school the term before he started so he was familiar with it.

 

I hope you get as lucky as we have been, good luck!

 

The only thing I would add about your post is that LEAs vary a great deal from the posts I have read here. Mine is not particularly good. Every SEN child that needs extra support = more money from the pot. When a child has a Statement that is a legally binding document and everything in the statement HAS to be done by the school. Anything in the Statement which is over and above what the school (or outside agencies such as SALT, EP, OT) would normally supply has to be paid for by the LEA. So getting the provision in the statement specified in terms of hours and staffing provision is the most important thing (once needs have been identified), and it says that in the Code of Practice. Any child that does not have a Statement can be in a vulnerable position because if there is not enough money, or staffing shortages, their provision will be cut because there will be no legal ramifications for the school or LEA because their provision, as currently supplied without a statement, is not legally binding. So, for example, if it says in my sons Statement that he will receive the weekly equivalent of 30 minutes speech and language therapist from a suitably qualified therapist, then that is what he receives. If there is a shortage of speech therapists the children without statements will lose that provision to ensure the statemented children are covered. That is why Statements are so important.

In theory, every need that a child with a SEN can be provided in the school without a Statement (unless it goes over the funding threshold of the current provision). However, my view is that LEAs use that to try to deter parents from going through the process of getting a Statement. We tried for 3 years without a Statement and nothing happened because of shortages of speech therapist and educational psychologists and autism outreach teachers.

My other point is that there are limited places in Enhanced Resource (mixed mainstream and special educational needs schools). So all those children with a Statement where the provision needed is clearly adding up to a SEN place, will get a place. All those children that are diagnosed or statemented later down the line have a real difficulty finding a SEN place. That is because the 27 SEN children in infant school (for example), go on to fill the 27 SEN places in junior school. So the LEA will tell you that 'there are no places available', and will try to keep you in a mainstream school. Sometimes, in some schools, that works. But the school has to be willing to undertake all this extra training - which has to be everyone in the school from mid-day supervisors to teachers. And, in my opinion, it takes staff years of ongoing training and experience before staff even come close to the expertise and experience of all the staff in an enhanced resource of special needs school. And finally it depends on the child. Some can cope in mainstream with the right supports. Others who are self aware and recognise that they are different can begin to suffer from depression and low self esteem. In my experience my son's confidence has increased 100% since he was Statemented and moved to an enhanced resource school.

And please take note: LEAs are not obliged to tell you the truth or give you all the options available to you. Some are truthful and very supportive. Others definately are not and have lied to parents or threatened them with all kinds of things to stop them proceeding with a Statement. In my case my son was denied an enhanced resource place. He was denied a TA, he was denied support during breaktimes and dinnertime, he was denised environmental changes to accommodate sensory issues etc etc the list goes on. At tribunal he was awarded all of these things and more.

I do hope that every parent has a good and positive experience throughout the whole process, but you do need to be aware that you should check everything you are told via the NAS, IPSEA or ACE because you may not know the implications of what you are being told. Ie. You don't need to get a statement - when all the agencies just mentioned will state that you do need to get a Statement because that is the only way of legally protecting and providing the provision your child needs.

 

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I do hope that every parent has a good and positive experience throughout the whole process, but you do need to be aware that you should check everything you are told via the NAS, IPSEA or ACE because you may not know the implications of what you are being told. Ie. You don't need to get a statement - when all the agencies just mentioned will state that you do need to get a Statement because that is the only way of legally protecting and providing the provision your child needs.

 

Hi Sally.

http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=1763&a=3229

I don't think according to this link and other information I have read that NAS say that all children with ASD do need to get a Statement.This would amount to a blanket policy which would be as illegal as any other blanket policy.

NAS,IPSEA and ACE certainly support parents in obtaining appropriate provision.However if every parent of a child with SEN who would like a Statement could have one then that would include all of them.Such a policy would remove resources from those children who are most vulnerable and most need it.

Provision for children with ASD does vary widely from one area to another.In some areas there is a great deal of awareness regarding ASD.Where there is good awareness and support in place using delegated funding there is no reason why all children should have a Statement on the basis of an ASD diagnosis.Karen.

 

IPSEA information regarding when a parent should request a Statutary Assessment.

 

that your child has a learning difficulty or a disability which is holding them back at school; and

that the school is not able to provide the help your child needs

.

This also does not say that all parents do need to get a Statement.

The ACE web site also provides detailed advice regarding ensuring that adequate support has been offered at school action plus before requesting a Statutary Assessment.

 

I do think this issue is important.Statutary Assessment is in itself extremely costly.If parents of children with all forms of SEN at whatever level all decided to request Statutary Assessment because they wished to gaurentee provision this would use vast amounts of resources.It also increases waiting lists for those who are most in need.

ACE and IPSEA do not offer any specific advice with regard to ASD.

 

http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=1068&a=3359

The information on this link might be useful if you decide to start and think about schools.It explains the sort of provision available and what to look for when visiting schools.

Having read your post yesterday evening I think it may well be worth attempting to find out what specialist provision for ASD is available in your area.

As schools will be closed for the summer in July if you are thinking of requesting a Statutary Assessment of SEN it may be worth making some initial enquires soon.

OFSTED reports are also a useful source of information.Even those for mainstream school usually include information about SEN provision and inclusion.

It may be worth attempting to find out whether there is any specialist nursery provision for children with ASD in your area.

This may be within a specialist school as a nusery unit, specialist nursery provision for children with SEN or extra provision within a playgroup.Karen.

 

http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=113&a=5704

You can also find out what educational provision is available in your area including nursery provision by using the link on this page.

Edited by Kathryn

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Hi Anna and Anthony.I posted some links on the tread above this morning.I see that you are also preparing parental views to submit regarding your request to assess.I thought I would post a link in case you find the information useful too and have not spotted it. :) Karen.

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