How to argue the point on ASD with Appeal panel

Children with ASD who are completely dependent on others for care because of their ASD need an EHCP. If they don’t have an EHCP, their parents should request an EHCNA. Children with EHCPs are dealt with outside of the normal admission arrangements.

Having a diagnosis of autism is completely insufficient for showing need for a specific school.

Child A with autism might be perfectly well able to cope in a mainstream school within the universal reasonable adjustments that any school is able to make for supporting neurodiverse pupils, and will thrive and get excellent grades. Child B might be totally unable to cope, unable to focus or function in the loud and rambunctious environment of a mainstream school and start avoiding school or self-harming or shutting down into total unresponsive mutism if forced into it. Having autism is not in itself a need or evidence of a need and there are no schools that have zero pupils with autism so you need evidence of specific needs that cannot be met within the universal provision that all schools are expected to offer but that your preferred school for some reason can. The usual mechanism for this is via an EHCP.

An exceptional medical need could be something like the school is all on one level for a young person who used a wheelchair or crutches, that there are hearing loops in every classroom for a young person with hearing loss, there is a school nurse based on site if they need regular medical care, or in my dc’s case, they had an established nurture programme for dc who were capable of mainstream education but needed provision at break and lunchtime.

I can see their point. The figure is currently put at 1 in 30 children though it’s over represented in areas where parents can afford private testing. I’m guessing from your post this isn’t a special needs school, just your preferred school, so no your child can’t leapfrog a child who lives in catchment.

I have sat in appeals panels as a clerk.
The evidence really has to be around why only this school can meet difficulties with evidence (not just evidence of the difficulty)

the assumption is all mainstream schools can support a wide variety of pretty significant needs including autism so having autism isnt seen as exceptional automatically. It has to be something specific to your chikds presentation of autism that makes it exceptional that this school is only one that can do that.

Yes agree with PPs, how is it framed in the letter from the HCP?

If it’s “in my opinion as a medical professional with in-depth experience of supporting YP with ASC, this is the only school that can properly support [your DC] because it offers xyz” then that’s a really strong line for your appeal.

You need to look at the exact wording. For example, “Mum says school X…” or “school X would be a good fit for DC…” isn’t strong evidence. Whereas, “School X is the only school that can meet DC’s needs because…” is stronger.

The bar for being under the exceptional medical and social needs oversubscription category is higher than the bar for an ordinary school admission appeal that is decided on the balance of prejudice.

So just because you don’t meet the bar for the former, doesn’t mean an appeal won’t be successful. You need to think about why DS would be disadvantaged by not going to the school. Just saying DS has autism won’t be enough. You can also look at other reasons beyond ASD e.g. extra-curricular clubs, language provision, the music offer, etc.

The vast majority with ASD won’t meet the bar for the exceptional medical and social needs category. Neither will most with diabetes. There isn’t a definitive list of what does and doesn’t qualify though. It depends on the individual circumstances. And, yes, you do need strong evidence. Not just circumstantial evidence or a feeling.

Yes agree with @SheilaFentiman @Robotindisguise no one is saying “no insulin for you” or the ASC equivalent (I guess, “no support or consideration for your ASC”).

What they are saying (literally) is that ASC is relatively common and as it has a spectrum, it may be that you DC’s needs can be addressed by any school.

If indeed mainstream school is inaccessible and they need a special school bc they are non-verbal or have other complex issues then that is one thing; if someone thinks they can simply say “but they have ASC therefore need the school I preferred” then that’s something else. You will need to show why that school is the one.

Plenty of DC with ASC are catered for and supported in mainstream, perhaps with adjustments such as earlier lunchtime or a quiet space for breaktimes, or a separate room for exams. You @Kalimero need in your appeal to specify the level of need and why the appealed-for school is the only one that can cater to it. PPs use the example of a wheelchair user needing a school with lifts and accessible doorways. Some schools have specialist units where support is offered (for example my DCs’ school had a unit that catered for YP who had hearing issues). If that’s the case then that may be a strong element.

What professional evidence? It needs to state that in the opinion of the writer only x school, or a school with y provision only available at x, can meet their needs. Saying dc has asd and in his parents’ opinion needs a place at x school is not enough.

But what is 'the insulin' in this tortured metaphor? Because that's why everyone is saying to be specific. If this school is the only with whatever this magic insulin equivalent for this particular ASD student is, then OP needs to specify that. But the current system is that ASD kids aren't having hypos in the offered school so this DC will be okay there.

In itself asd will not be sufficient to qualify, all schools have SEND provision. If some of its presentations created a specific need which would be catered for by a specific school that might be more relevant and useful at an appeal. However being without an EHCP suggests it is mild.

Autism affects everyone differently. Both of my DC have autism, one manages fine in mainstream without an EHCP (and struggles after leaving), the other hangs on by a thread with lots of support in place.

In some cases it will be an exceptional need. You should set out what exactly your child needs and why that particular school is able to meet his needs while the other one can't.
Just saying he has autism doesn't explain what specific need he has that can only be met at the chosen school because there will be many children with autism at every school.

I think for people to help it might be useful to provide some more information.
*What additional support does your child need? How is that need evidenced? What support do they receive in their current setting?
*Why do you believe the allocated school can't meet their needs? What does your preferred school offer that makes it better placed to meet your child's needs?
*Did you apply and hope to be placed in a specific ESM category of applications for your preferred school? Is this what the rejected form relates to? If not how does it fit within the admissions system?

Except the insulin isn’t available at the mainstream surgeries (to torture the metaphor). You are just told that it is and when you repeatedly have a hypo it is treated as a disciplinary matter

That is completely different and a very crass comparison to make. Shame on you.

I'm surprised it isn't a larger percentage.

Surely you can understand why it's not possible to make such a list covering every medical condition that a child could have and at what degree it becomes exceptional. It's not hard to imagine that an exceptional medical need might be someone in a wheelchair needing a school that's fully accessible as opposed to an old school with no adaptations. Or a hundred other specific examples. But they can't generalise upfront saying don't bother us about your DCs asthma or ND because we're not interested. You fill the form in or you don't, and they take your case forward or they don't, it's not that much energy wasted.

Imagine if they said that about diabetes? It’s becoming more common so no insulin for you.

They aren’t saying “no insulin for you”

They are saying “access to insulin is available in various places, you do not need to specifically go to surgery X for it”