AIBU to think teacher should have consulted about this?

I think a lot depends.
I do have regular contact with the parents of my SEND students (to differing levels based on age and child because I'm secondary). I wouldn't be ringing up to consult with parents for every seating plan change, but would make changes in line with what is in the child's pen portrait (or their all about me that they fill in for circulation to staff) and/or their profile from our SENDCo.

So, for example one of my children's forms stated they like to be at the back near the door. The problem is that I moved rooms half way through the year so they had to choose either at the back OR near the door. I asked them, they told me their preference. I sat a according to their preference. I'd have been a bit put out if I'd then got a phone call from home saying they had concerns because I hadn't contacted them to discuss this.

Another child has SEMH issues this year Long story short, after talking to relevant colleagues I called home on the PD day to let home know that I'd be announcing my pregnancy the next day (mainly by showing up with a massive bump). That sort of contact even though it was a personal situation was more than reasonable in case it triggered a range of behaviours stemming from that child's fear of change and attachment issues with adults.

The start of a new year is a bit of a getting to know you exercise and it requires open mindedness on all sides, including that the teacher may do things differently from last year and that's ok. An open minded meeting is probably the best way forward

Ahh I see you are the poster who came up with this little gem.

Equally, I have often tried things without consulting the parent

see my above post.

Your experimenting on a SN child's tolerance of change or other things, can have devastating long lasting effects, depending on how you go about it.

Doing something at school can also have knock on effects for home life too. If a parent is aware of a change at school they can be prepared at home for a change in behaviour too.

Sudden melt downs at home and not speaking at home, being with drawn, quiet or a loss of appetite ect. Would be easier to understand, and also feed back to school whether the change has been detrimental or not.

really?

It would be a huge waste of time to phone every parent for every change to the seating plan. That precious time is spent planning for those individual needs

throwing in about having to waste time telling every parent about change in seating plan, which is implying to the OP. why are you and your child so special?

in fact your statement just comes across as someone who finds having a SEN child in your class, as a pain in the arse for taking up your precious time with the normal kids.

What a scandalous misrepresentation. No it doesn’t.

in fact your statement just comes across as someone who finds having a SEN child in your class, as a pain in the arse for taking up your precious time with the normal kids.

nice.

It would be a huge waste of time to phone every parent for every change to the seating plan. That precious time is spent planning for those individual needs

The Arrogance is breath taking.

I would presume that not all the children in your class, is a child of Special Educational Need. So wouldn't need Special Educational Need planning.

But since we are talking a child that needs Special Educational Needs input, Then the Special planning and taking a tiny bit of extra time in informing a parent, is needed.

Apparently they arrived in their classroom this morning and it was rearranged and they were told to sit where their reading books were and that those seats were now their seats for the rest of the year

Well that teachers experiment would have blown up in her face (and the rest of the classes) if it had been my DC.

Even though the arrangement would have benifitted them. The sudden change and no questions asked approach. Would have left them feeling insecure and having no control.

The behaviour that would follow would have been very volatile, and mostly doing things to take any part of control back over their lives, which would really not be conducive to a settled harmonious class room.

Pulling a stunt like that, would have arroded any trust DC had in the teacher and would takes months (maybe never) to get back.

Over the years the teachers who have communicated with me and DC, have had an exceptionally gifted and pleasant pupil. My DC confidence has been strong, which in turn helped them bond and socialise well with others.

The teachers who felt they needed no other input, because they were 'highly trianed' and know best, did no end of damage to my DC mental health, and the teachers struggled to maintain DC behaviour and DC level of education, as DC lost confidence in themselves, their concentration and high level of work dropped.
But of course the teachers never saw themselves as a source of the problem, DC was the problem because of special needs, meant they couldn't be a high achiever, focused and not anxious.

Luckily DC had more good teachers than 'know it all' other teachers.

My post didn't seem to post last nightm

It's worth pushing the EHCP whilst at primary, especially if they're already got a diagnosis.
With one of my former students it took until GCSE to get an ASD diagnosis and that ultimately will have affected their progress. Much as some of us took the same approach we would with a child with ASD, I know some didn't because they weren't technically SEND.

Sometimes (anecdotally) some primaries stop pushing for EHCP in upper KS2 because it's almost not their issue anymore, but I find transition to secondary is much better if they move up with everything in place, they've had family meetings with SENDCo, the information has gone to staff (usually by a week in) and so on.

So get onto the EHCP now - parents can apply for their child, it doesn't have to be the school.

That’s true, but be aware that school will still be asked for their input. I’ve only known one parent apply themselves after we showed them the evidence that that the child was achieving in school through their Support Arrangements Plan and differentiation in class. They were convinced an EHCP would bring with it 30 hours of 1:1 support.

They were turned down and were heartbroken but he is now home-schooled. In the end, I don’t think anything school did would have been enough.

In my youngest's school I would have been consulted prior to the end of last year regarding things like this - we had a meeting toward the very end of the last academic year (we meet with the SENCO half termly to review and work out ways forward) where we discussed exactly these kind of issues prior to the new academic year starting - and one of the items on the agenda was where to seat DD2 in the new class as it was felt (both coming from us and from school) that rather than having a flexible sit where you choose seating arrangement that they'd had the previous year, having a designated seat with all her equipment nearby and her knowing exactly where to put everything would help her organise herself and her belongings and access the things put in place to support her.

Also met with the SENCO and class teacher last week to review how she'd settled in to the new class - would have done that as a matter of course over the next couple of weeks anyway but we did it earlier to make things a bit more convenient for all concerned.

so for something as important as being sat in a particular place (for a child who struggles with many aspects of the classroom and struggles socially) it seems a good idea to tell the parent, who is the one who will have to help that child through the effects of any stress.

I don’t think it’s a bad idea. I think it’s fine to tell the parent.

I don’t get the impression here, though, that it is not being told that the OP and others are objecting to. It is not being asked. And actually, as the teacher I have and need to have the authority to make changes in my classroom for the benefit of all the pupils without necessarily asking a parent if it is okay. I don’t mind communicating things if the parent makes it clear that this is important to them. But if I make a change and it is working really well, there is no urgent need to do that because the child’s learning and welfare have been considered and the strategy is working.

...sorry hit post too soon!
...so for something as important as being sat in a particular place (for a child who struggles with many aspects of the classroom and struggles socially) it seems a good idea to tell the parent, who is the one who will have to help that child through the effects of any stress.

There is lots of evidence that feeling stressed affects the formation of long-term memories.
Yes, and health both mental and physical - so for something as important as being sat on a f

There is lots of evidence that feeling stressed affects the formation of long-term memories. If a child is placed next to other children in a classroom for the well-intentioned purpose of not excluding them - even though, in my experience, they will often feel excluded anyway because children are very skilled at making it clear to someone that they are “different” even without being rude - and this causes that child to feel the constant stress of trying to alter their behaviour (be it tics, desire to order the desk in a certain way, struggling to cope with sensory stimulation from the person next to them, feeling they have to try to make eye contact when they don’t want to) the chances are this will have a serious detrimental effect on their learning.

We are almost at the end of ds1 and ds2's education (both with an ASC). Without doubt the schools and teachers that have worked best for my two are those that have communicated well with dh and I.

Sitting on their own would have delighted ds1 and ds2 at times (at one stage in his words ds1 spent most of the day in a "Cupboard" much to his delight which was a bit alarming but on investigation the cupboard actually turned out to be a small, storage room). What as a parent I would want to know is if the teacher alongside this strategy also has thought about how she will facilitate and teach social interactions which is after all the area in which most children with ASC need the most help with.

This setup started with my ds too. It was the beginning of the end for him. They even had him facing the window with his back to everyone. Ds quite liked it as he could go into in own world but from a class point of view he was ignored, singled out as weird and ostracised from the class. No one played with him at break etc. He then didn't go to school for 10 months.

In our case, it's not so much about the desk but what the desk signifies to the child and the class.

do you feel that it undermines a teacher's professional role if they have to work with parents, in making certain decisions, in order to ensure that a child with SEN has their needs met?

No. I have often consulted with parents, if I feel uncertain of what is best for a child. Equally, I have often tried things without consulting the parent.

My laughing face was because, in my opinion, there is no way at all that the new teacher can know my son in 8 days well enough to know how he would respond to this change.

The teacher is getting to know him, including seeing for herself how he responds to a change she thinks will benefit his learning. A change that seems to mean he is thriving in the classroom. If she had consulted you beforehand, what difference might that have made? What would you have said to her, that you believe would have made things better for your DS?

In my classroom, I decide the seating plan. I may consult a parent if there is an issue, but if I believe a choice will be better for a child, I will try it out. That’s my role as the teacher.

On EHCP - it is the Y5 EHCP review at which secondary transfer is discussed and any specific needs written in for that transition (and any specific secondary destination).

Secondary application comes so early in Y6 that it is essential to have a plan worked out in Y5.

So get onto the EHCP now - parents can apply for their child, it doesn't have to be the school. You may not get one - IME ASD without extreme behaviour and / or very significant learning delay is insufficient BUT at the very least it will help to document all his needs, targets and suggested interventions / adaptations well before secondary. If you apply now - as in within the next few weeks - you may get a conclusion - as in a decision yes or no - by the end of Y5.

OP, I think it's come as a shock to you that he is sat on his own (especially if you are worried about social skills). However, if his way of coping previous was to sit in another room entirely this seems like it might be a step forward for him - although he may have his own table he will be in the same room and close to the other children so he will be easily able to join in with group activities if he feels comfortable at the time.

I also think it would be fine if you spoke to the teacher to clarify how this new arrangement would work with the planned strategies - such as coping skills - that you'd already spoken to the school about.

There are several students in my classes with ASD and no ehcps. If I can accommodate their needs within my classroom, they aren't deemed needing an ehcp. I was told by one when we were looking into it for DS1 that we needed to prove he needed more than the standard £6k a year provision for each child, and he simply didn't. He had IBPs and IEPs, but these have been enough. He's now in year 9 of mainstream and still has no ehcp, and doesn't need one as the teachers/senco/I email each other with updates or any problems. This relies on open communication however.

I have 1 student out of around 15 in my classes with a ehcp. The others I have to find individual ways of working for them.

*Having an ECHP doesn’t guarantee 1:1 support and having a diagnosis of ASD doesn’t guarantee an EHCP.

You can put all the pressure you like on the school but if he doesn’t meet criteria for an EHCP, he won’t get one*

I agree. It seems to be much harder now too than it was when my DS was diagnosed at age 6

The problem here seems to be with the lack of communication rather than the actual idea itself. I wouldn't personally be happy that the teacher had done something like that without even broaching the idea to me. What worries me more is the lack of contact you seem to have had with the SENCO. Both at Primary and my DS's new high school, I had lots of contact with the SENCO. Communication lines are really important when your child has additional needs.

If I were you, I would be requesting a meeting with the SENCO to find out exactly what is being done and how it helps. I would also find out where they are up to with the EHCP application.

Having said all that, I wouldn't be so sure that even new adults in your child's life can't make the best decisions. My DS has been at his new school just over a week and after a few days, the SENCO sent me a fantastic action plan that she wrote and it's better than all the support he ever had in primary. She even used the words 'characteristics of Dyslexia' which had never even been mentioned to me before and has put plans in place to help him with that

OP please put pressure on the school for an EHP. If he had one then everything would have to be documented and planned. Does he have a statement? His diagnosis should be enough for official planning. Does he have 1:1 TA support?

An EHCP is the newish name for a statement, not something additional.

Having an ECHP doesn’t guarantee 1:1 support and having a diagnosis of ASD doesn’t guarantee an EHCP.

You can put all the pressure you like on the school but if he doesn’t meet criteria for an EHCP, he won’t get one.

Are there any local drumming groups he could join?

This has worked really well for desensitising a child that couldn't deal with background noise in a classroom and improved social skills.