SEN Child school options help!

Of course so much depends on what the chosen school offers. My younger daughter went to a specialist speech and language school with small classes, on site OT and SALT, sensory rooms etc. So she didn't need a 1 to 1 TA in that scenario. But if she had gone to our local comprehensive, she might have needed a 1 to 1 TA - but that wouldn't have been the right setting for her.

The issue the OP has is that she wants a non sen independent school for secondary and the LA might well feel that the child's needs could be met in a mainstream with subject specific TAs. And they may be right.

Independent schools often have limited sen facilities, experience, willingness to compromise etc and in that sort scenario you might well need a 1 to 1, but is this the best option for the child?

My point is that I think parents are better to identify the environment that will work best overall, looking at what child-specific sen support will be required on top.

Some children are in schools with 1 to 1 TAs because these schools are not set up for sen and there might be better alternatives. I still say it is unusual to have a 1 to 1 TA in secondary as most children with that level of need will go to specialist provision.

Yes my daughter had a fully funded 1-1 for secondary school it’s not unheard of.’

I’m not saying OP’s DD needs 1:1, but 1:1 for some or all of the time isn’t as unusual at secondary as LAs and some schools would like people to believe. They aren’t only for DC who have disabilities like VI either. If 1:1 is detailed, specified and quantified in F, it must be provided. Whether it can be different staff for different subjects depends on the wording in F rather than what the school typically does.

Parents should focus on the provision detailed, specified and quantified in F rather than the funding. That provision is enforceable. LAs are ultimately responsible. This duty is absolute and, as they have been shown time and again, lack of funding, resources or staffing is not a lawful excuse for failure to provide it.

I put my DD in the school that was going to be right away from her friends etc and she thrived. Small class sizes, single sex. I’d do the school that works best for her.

This is good advice.

Facebook groups are full of people saying ‘demand a 1:1’ when (a) this is neither practical nor possible with even top up funding and (b) the vast, vast majority of SEND children don’t want to be trailed around by a 1:1.

Most autistic children in my setting do well with some accommodations. A handful cannot cope without an adult to help them regulate and manage the school environment/other children, and usually end up moving to a specialist autism school (if they can get a place). The occasional child cannot cope with school at all and might need an EOTAS package.

1 to 1 support is very unusual in secondary school. Usually the school pools the ehc funding and employs subject specific TAs. A 1 to 1 TA would mainly be for children with a disability like visual impairment. Otherwise a specialist environment might be more appropriate.

Imo for secondary you are best choosing the environment that your child will cope with and want to attend. There is only so much you can do with additional support. Most kids don't want to stick out.

So i would go for the new school, which will be inherently better suited to your daughter.

Tbh all you can do is try and see how it goes and revisit if it doesn't work out. I know several academically able autistic girls whose parents were very bullish about how they would cope in secondary, with catastrophic results by half term, leading to school refusal, nervous breakdowns and a long period of being at home before more appropriate schooling was set up.

Unfortunately, that isn’t uncommon. LAs regularly act unlawfully even in the face of overwhelming evidence. It is part of the reason why the FTT success rate is so high. It kicks the can down the road, some don’t appeal, and it saves the LA money in the short term. Despite all that, navigating the system is far easier if you know the law.

@ChasingMoreSleep fair enough, that make sense. Of course each of us is mostly closely familar with our own particular case (or cases if we have multiple DC with SEN) but in our case the LA's refusal to assess was ridiculous in claiming that the threshold wasn't met that DC may need an ECHP when we had a wealth of evidence of not coping without one.

It is important parents know the actual law even if their DC meets the threshold. Otherwise, they may build their case only on the fact that their DC may have SEN and think it is enough. This is especially important if, as the pp is, the parent is appealing and when it is usually the second part of the test LAs rely on to refuse to assess. There is a distinction between part a of the test and part b. Both need satisfying. Showing the LA you know the actual law also helps.

I am not saying the pp’s DC doesn’t meet the threshold. Just that it is important she knows the legal test that will be applied at appeal.

tbh I don't think this is a distinction that is fundamentally going to make a difference for the majority of people in this part of mn. If a child is burning out/mot coping/unable to attend school peoperly/unable to access education then by definition they may need an EHCP and the process to establish whether or not they do is with an EHCNA so there is no rational basis to decline to assess. The only people that the second part of the definition might exclude might be the SEN equivalent of the "worried well" ie kids who do present as neurodiverse or with other identifiable additional needs but who are coping well and thriving in mainstream education with only the universal adjustments that the school is able to provide without an EHCP - and very few parents are going to be seeking an EHCP just for shits and giggles if their child is coping well and thriving in mainstream education with only the universal adjustments that the school is able to provide without an EHCP.

@CandyEnclosingInvisible thank you. Yes, an obstacle course is right! I think it does feel like a delaying tactic, as how can they possibly know it’s not needed when an assessment hasn’t taken place?

They really don't. As we scramble over each boulder in the obstacle course they set up to prevent us from getting our kids the support they need, they really underestimate the power of parental love. Stick open.spotify.com/track/3AUzGXi5JCoDcg2MMbbbHJ "Ain't no Mountain High Enough" on repeat and power on through. The mediation thing is just a delaying tactic, there's nothing that can be said in mediatiom that takes away your child's right to have their needs assessed, and they know it, it's just more friction. Once needs are assessed it is possible that a legitimate outcome could be that those needs are possible to meet within the universal provision that is supposed to be available to all children without an EHCP but even then the door is open to demonstrate that if a child isn't thriving under those circumstances then clearly needs are not being met.

The legal threshold at which a child is entitled to have their needs assessed is that it is possible that they may have additional needs.

Not quite. May have SEN is only one part. The legal test as set out in section 36(8) of the Children and Families Act 2014 is a) DC has or may have SEN, and b) it may be necessary for special educational provision to be made for DC in accordance with an EHCP.

Thank you for your help. I have contacted the mediators today as looking at the letter again it seems that I can’t go to tribunal unless I’ve at least been in touch with a mediator to discuss the possibility of mediation, even if this is not the route that we take. They don’t make it easy!

@dicentra365 the LA turns down pretty much everyone at first unless a child has such obvious and profound additional needs that they don't think they can get away with it. This is a deliberate tactic to try to put people off and create friction to slow down the rate at which new children come into the EHCP system. You just need to persist. We were originally turned down for assessment in October 2024 and had a long battle of appeals and evidence gathering and eventually got the EHCP last week.

The legal threshold at which a child is entitled to have their needs assessed is that it is possible that they may have additional needs. This is a very low bar to meet and no child should actually ever be turned down for assessment if there is any reasonable basis for concern.

The problem with this is that the assumption is the other children will want to remain friends with their primary school friends once they go to secondary school. This rarely happens - it’s a whole new world, a whole new world, a different set of possible friends.
If you ask most adults, they’re not still close friends to people they went to primary school with.

My DS has SEN and has had 3 school moves (all at primary level). He is also quite inflexible and made friends at his first school but we had no choice and we just told him what was happening.
I would move her. Regarding accommodations, I'm not sure shorter days or flexible timing would be the only thing they can offer - does either school have spaces for down time, to avoid busy break times or lunch? Flexibility on homework or spaces to do it at school?
Also you may find that the original school says they can't meet her need once the EHCP is issued.

From the timings, OP has already successfully appealed refusal to assess. Now the LA has 10 weeks to inform her if they aren’t going to issue (this is the 18th May date) and 14 weeks to finalise if they are going to issue.

For EOTAS/EOTIS, OP would need evidence that it is inappropriate for provision to be made in a school.

Just so you are aware, "A sensory circuit each morning delivered by a TA" could be delivered otherwise than in school. TAs and sensory circuits aren’t limited to schools. Although, the wording needs to be tighter, e.g. how long for and the qualifications/training/experience of the TA, so it is detailed, specified and quantified regardless of if there is a school to be attended or not.

OP I would take a deep breath and a step back. It is massively stressful and there are so many moving parts and sometimes it feels like the decision tree is endless and so convoluted you can't know what to do next.

I agree it would be really good to get some support for you in this process. As well as legal people to help , I could also suggest general sen experts / lay advocates who will guide you through the process and will suggest a few if you DM me. I found a few of them good because they helped me articulate what state DD was in and what she might need. But I echo what the other poster said, it is unregulated and you can spend a fortune, so be wary.

I know it feels like you want someone to just sort it all out for you- the brutal truth is it is a marathon not a sprint, and nobody will ever be as good at noting and articulating and advocating for your DD's needs as you are. And there are more choices in your path than just someone else finding the right solution.

I think there are three areas you need to think through calmly and maybe write down thoughts and a plan.

1. DD is vulnerable NOW. You say the school isn't providing many accommodations and she isn't feeling she needs them but is instead pushing herself into burnout. I think to have any chance of school working in the long term you need to get her lots of help now, and free up as much of your time personally to do that as you can- it's an utter nightmare but feels necessary. Also get more of a sense of what would help her at school. I would bet money that it is a more relational approach and more predictability, plus some sensory investigation - at least to start with. Her being academically able has nothing to do with whether she might need 121. 121 isn't the only kind of tool in the toolkit either, inform yourself as to what might be around and might help her. If you can get more of a sense of this you will avoid section F of ehcp being full of rubbish boilerplate. In our case they put "her spelling isnt great she will have an extra spelling test/session per week"...completely counterproductive as ny child was so stressed out and autonomy-focused that this would be a negative driver for her and would prevent her going to school. They said "she will have extra.work on zones of regulation". Well that is a cognitively based tool which is very poor for an incredibly cognitively able child who lacks embodied awareness and interoception. I needed to learn this stuff in order to explain why things would not be appropriate. I think things are changing and you can't hang onto the old world - she won't just go back into school and be ok. I hope she does but I think she won't - sorry.
2. Medium term - when exactly is the ehcp due to be finalised? You were talking about tribunal dates but I'm not sure exactly what the relevance is - have you already got an ehcp and you are appealing? or do you mean you don't hear until May whether they will actually do a needs assessment. Have they only just started? this makes a big difference. What I didn't realise (my DD was at a prep too) was that with the EHCP in force it is a legal document - I couldn't pick and choose if I wanted a school to meet the provisions, once the document exists the school has to do it, and they might not take my child if not..I had this idea that the EHCP would be sort of bobbins, and a hoop to jump through, and if I found a lovely private school they could ignore it all, so long as DD was happy. But no.
3. Long term - you can't actually plan for longer term as you don't know if DD will manage the rest of the academic year or what will happen in September. But I would do two paths, one that includes negotiating now with a school that you think would definitely be able to meet her needs. The EHCP process doesn't churn then spit out the right answer, you have to guide it.I dont know your DD and I'm a random off the internet, but do bear in mind she might not be going anywhere in September if burnout continues. So make sure section F contains provisions broad and clear enough to be delivered NOT in a school setting. Not "A sensory circuit each morning delivered by a TA" but something specifying what kind of activity would regulate her and what expertise or resources are required to deliver it.

I don’t use the app but I don’t think you can PM on it. I think you have to use the desktop version or the mobile site.

Are you using the desktop version, the mobile site or the app?