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Here you'll find advice from parents and teachers on special needs education.

Original poster

School named in EHCP are saying they cannot meet my son's needs. - advice please

57 replies

Havannah · 30/09/2015 16:05

My 5 year old has a diagnosis of ASD and an EHCP naming the school which he has attended since September, but I learned at a meeting today that they say they cannot meet his needs because of lack of funding to continue pay for a 1 to 1 which they consider he needs. They also say that whilst there has been a TA with him at all times, and that has been funded till Xmas, that he really needs someone who is trained to manage his behaviour, and the TA they've got till Xmas isn't. I got the feeling in the meeting that if the funding was there there wouldn't be a problem. They are saying he should go to a special school, but I want him to stay where he is because he is so happy there. The behaviour they complain of at school (throwing chairs etc) comes as a shock to me because when he is with me he is quite well behaved. They say they need someone with him who is trained to deal with such behaviour. He is a bright boy, but he does need fairly constant bringing back to task.

OP posts:
lougle · 03/10/2015 08:02

Special schools can be fantastic, by the way! DD1 gets a rich, varied and functional curriculum. Behavior is dealt with strategically and analysed for trends as a matter of course. Restraint (hugs are restraint if imposed on a child) is a last resort.

annandale · 03/10/2015 07:56

I do feel that when a child is being educated completely separately from the rest of the cohort, something needs to change - either the setting or the approach.

One of the difficulties of getting children to do things when they don't react in a standard way is what effect it has on the rest of the children. It is tricky to bring a child constantly back to task in a classroom of other children. It's also hard to watch a child who finds the classroom environment intrinsically difficult to handle, spend most of his resources just on dealing with where he is.

However, I've known a child in your son's position go back into class. TBH it was because he had a teacher who was skilled enough.

KittyandTeal · 03/10/2015 07:51

I'm so sorry you and your son are in this position.

I'd just like to add, as a reception teacher, we are in a similar situation with 2 lads in our year. Both would probably cope in mainstream but our head has told us no funding for a 1:2 (they both had 1:1 at nursery so god knows why they don't at school)

We are considering trying to encourage the mum of one to think about specialist setting. As much as it pains me and the lad is wonderful without a 1:1 we cannot cater or extend his learning in the way he needs.

It breaks my heart that we are failing those 2 so badly.

aBrightNewDay · 03/10/2015 07:50

If he is throwing chairs around (presumably in lessons?) then as a teacher I can understand why they are putting him in a separate room.

Original poster
Havannah · 03/10/2015 07:46

Thank you both for your messages. I am away from home at the moment (gone to my parents for a weekend of licking my wounds), so cannot check exactly what the EHCP says. I also can't remember if he has ever been assessed by an Ed Psych. I know that the school he is at now are getting an Ed. Psych in to assess him - undoubtedly one friendly to them who will agree with them that they cannot handle him. The thing I really cannot understand is why they are isolating him at school by having him spend his day in a separate room when the whole point of him going to school was to allow him to mix. I must say, my inclination is to home school him - he behaves himself with me because he knows I won't let him get away with it. At school, if he has a meltdown they send for the teacher who is supposedly trained, who then holds him till he calms down. My son likes the teacher and I wonder if holding him is reinforcing the bad behaviour, because he views it as a hug.
I will try to move all this to the thread you suggest - thank you both.

OP posts:
bialystockandbloom · 02/10/2015 18:42

Yes Jeeves is right, contact the local authority. If the named school has funding issues, this is between them and the LA.

They say they need someone with him who is trained to deal with such behaviour

Too flipping right he does! Who the hell are they using as a TA if that person isn't already trained?! Angry on your behalf.

The exact type of support should be specified in your EHCP, including the level of training, skills, expertise of the TA supporting your dc. What does the EHCP state? If there is specified and quantified support there which isn't being met this also can be taken up with your LA - if this is the case write to them to inform them they are not providing what is specified in the EHCP.

The fact is, if he has been assessed by Ed Pysch etc, and deemed able to go to mainstream school with adequate support, and you want him (and he wants to) to continue at that school, the school cannot just say they cannot meet his needs simply because they haven't provided adequately trained support for him. If they need more funding for a higher level of expert staff, this is between them and the LA.

I'd ask for this thread to be moved to the SN Children section OP, it gets much more traffic there, and many, many people who have been in your position and can advise more.

InimitableJeeves · 02/10/2015 18:31

You need to contact your local authority early and tell them what the school is saying. It is the local authority's responsibility to ensure that your child gets the support set out in section F of his EHCP, and therefore they need to talk to the school about why they say they can't fund 1:1 and whether they need extra funding to cover this. If that doesn't work, contact SOS SEN or IPSEA.