Educational psychologist for private consultation?

[binkie]

We've been called in for another SEN meeting at ds's school (private) and I'm sure they are going to ask us to have him see an ed psych. Does anyone know of someone good for gifted-but-with-learning-difficulties? London-based if possible.

Also I've seen references on here to an (old) ed psych strand but can't find - can anyone help?

[bundle]

try searching the British Psychological Society's database

[marialuisa]

Go to the institute of psychiatry website. They wil give you more pointers about ed psych's specialties than BPS and are in London.

[Davros]

I've posted a list before in the Special Needs section. Let me know if you can't find it.

[Issymum]

I was vaguely looking at this in the context of finding the right school for DD1.

Can't do the link thing with a child on my knee, but useful websites are www.psych-ed.org and www.educational-psychologist.co.uk.

One of these provides lots of information about educational psychology and special needs and one helps you find a psychologist. Can't recall which one is which!

[binkie]

Davros, sorry I can't find it: can you link? I think your knowledge may help particularly - I would like to find someone who has autistic spectrum expertise too, as descriptions of asperger's sometimes ring bells (though not always/throughout) and I need to stop the self-diagnosing.

[binkie]

issymum, sorry to sound ignoring, posts crossed (and thanks to all)

[binkie]

Davros, now I've found your list, so disregard plea below. Looks ideal.

Thanks again.

[Davros]

Oh good Binkie. The only one I've met is Albert Reid who I liked very much and know he has a lot of ASD experience. All of them are people who have been used by members of an EGroup I belong to that is for people running ABA programs, so basically more or less all with children with ASD. Good luck, let us know what happens.

[binkie]

Update: we had the meeting this morning and yes, we're to see an ed psych. Davros, I tried Albert Reid and his waiting list is 4-5 months - so as I still think we're probably in subtle-difficulties territory I will try elsewhere in the meantime.

The school gave us some suggestions, particularly two group practices - Lyn Fry Associates, and Child Consultants, both central London. From a quick phone call I'm inclined to CC, but can anyone help who knows more?

[binkie]

Further updates, in case of use to anyone going through a similar procedure. We've now had our appt, with Child Consultants (private, as it had to be because the school is): 15 minutes talk to parents without ds there (probably would have been longer if I hadn't sent in an essay about ds in advance), 40-50 minutes of ds on his own with ed psych, 20 minutes debrief without ds. Ds patently loved his time, doing puzzles, getting praise & having a new grown-up's attention all to himself - excited chatter audible all the way down the hall. As well as the verbal debrief, we will have a written report that can be passed to the school.

We were asked at the beginning of the session for any particular concerns to assess & I specially asked that Asperger-type features be looked out for. (Verdict is that because (in particular, presumably other things taken into account) ds could "take the emotional temperature of a situation", managed personal space in a normal sort of way, didn't get hung up on detail, wasn't thrown by figurative language, and (it seems crucially) could whenever asked easily move from one suggested activity to another, that we are not in that territory (although I should not expect him ever to be "ordinary" ). And that a sing-song, slightly too high & loud, every-word-emphasised-the-same speech pattern like his isn't in itself a marker - it sounds silly now but in my anxiety I just couldn't get past that feature, even though I could see that he doesn't always talk like that & that it comes & goes depending on who he's talking to, about what, etc.)

So instead of the diagnosis I was more than half-expecting (and ready for with my next steps planned & research in hand), what we have is some very very high IQ scores & the challenge of seeing whether ds's school can decide to cope. Whole new issue.

[binkie]

ks - lovely message, thank you for that! Yes, it was really was good. All the very best for yours, and please do an update too - will look out.

One of the school's express claims is that it caters for giftedness ... we just hope that means it will appreciate a child of the active rather than reflective sort, whose entire being is involved in thinking - so (so ed psych says) the more he zooms about the more he's taking in - and he needs "multi-sensory" learning - so that if the teaching doesn't involve his eyes, and his ears, and (oh dear) his fingers, there are going to be energy eruptions.