How to argue the point on ASD with Appeal panel

It’s not about the diagnosis.

it’s about, for example:

child X is diagnosed with autism. He is doubly incontinent and requires intimate care at points throughout the day by a trained TA. Child X has been supported in toilet training by a programme delivered by his 1:1 TA in his primary school setting and is beginning to gain awareness of “needing to go” and continuing this programme will enable him to continue his journey towards independent toileting,

etc etc etc.

god it’s been three years since I did this and I still have the jargon

I think the key to appeals is that you have to show that the school you are appealing to is the only school in the area that can offer what your child needs. I think this is incredibly tough to do. Good luck.

Exceptional medical need - child is in a wheelchair and this is the only flat school.
Exceptional social need - parents work for police/social services and know professionally too many parents in local schools so child needs to go to school out of area.
Exceptional medical need - child needs frequent unexpected urgent hospital admission and this school is next door to hospital A&E

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

You may end up having to go to a tribunal on this, but I would reply robustly setting out the reasons why mainstream school is inaccessible and saying there is no basis in law for refusing protected reasonable adjustments allowing a child to access education because her condition is less rarely diagnosed than it used to be. One per cent is still rare (in fact sounds a bit on the low side to me)

I suspect it would be very difficult to make a blanket list as to what is/isn’t exceptional.

They aren’t saying he doesn’t have needs.

They are saying that most schools have students with ASD so they can deal with students with ASD successfully. Schools with no pupils with ASD will be practically non existent these date and limited to tiny village schoolS or similar extreme circumstances

Autism in itself is not an exceptional need. The prevalence is so high now. At least 1-3 kids in every classroom will be neurodivergent, so in a large secondary this could be 50. I’d focus more on his needs not his diagnosis.

You'd have to argue much more specifically to differentiate him from the 100s (or even 1000s) of ASD applications and make it very clear why that school addresses those specifics in a way that the allocated school/other schools can't. If the ASD presents as extreme, non-verbal etc. then it would be more exceptional and you'd be seeking a specialist unit or SEN school, which you'd still sometimes have to fight for a place in given the limited suitable settings. But if it's less extreme and he's in mainstream then there'll be others like him in most schools and even if its not the ideal setting, it's what there is and what you'll get unless you're lucky and find a specific angle that swings the appeal your way.

You need to focus on how the condition affects your child and the needs that they have.

autism as a diagnosis covers a very broad spectrum.

be specific.

As pp said, there are so many children with a diagnosis of ASC now - 15% of my school for example. Why does your child need the place over anyone else appealing? That's what you need to focus on - autism is the umbrella but you need to be specific about anything that school provides which would be beneficial that no other school can, eg they are exceptionally gifted in whatever and no other school in the area offers that etc.

Agreed, all schools should be able to support adequately under universal SEN provision since your child doesn’t have an EHCP

I can sort of see their point?

ASD is getting diagnosed more, so it is no longer 'exceptional' to have it, and they may feel that it doesn't require a particular school. If not impacting enough to need an EHCP, then any mainstream should cope iyswim?

So you will need to just argue the disadvantage to your child in the appeal without trying to get them up into a higher admissions category.