Are there any SENCOs about? Or people who deal with SENCOs regularly?

I used to be such a non-confrontational type, Katymac, but I have learned the hard way that when it comes to getting proper provision in place for children with SEN in this country, you have to be a 'troublemaker'.

I google searched email addresses for the Head of Inclusion, his secretary, the Head of Educational Welfare and her secretary and deputy, Head of exclusions, the chief Ed Psych, the chief ASD advisory teacher etc at my LEA and started emailing them / cc-ing them in on emails to the school and governors when i was feeling ignored and belittled re: my DS's problems.

Spurred them into action, I can tell you.

Local councillors, MPs and papers, too, if you want to play dirty.

Hi there, it sounds like you are having a struggle at the moment.
I'm not sure that I would recommend this in the normal course of my duties, although I do sometimes suggest it to the parents I work with, but if you feel that your daughter's needs are not being met and you are not being listened to (and it sounds like she is not getting the help she has been allocated) write a letter to the local authority director of children's services. They will reply to you and the head teacher will start to take action very quickly indeed.

It's not about being noisy and demanding. You are simply asking for what your daughter has been made entitled to.

Verybest of luck

I am so pleased your shouting got somewhere! Good luck for the rest.

it's a huge problem for lots of kids with sn - parents who don't have the capacity or knowledge to advocate for their child/ ren.

v sad.

it really shouldn't have to be that way, but depressingly it so often is...

call the Chair of Governors, and ask to be given the number of the Governor responsible for SN.

and get very, very upset. your daughter has been awarded emergency support funding, and it is not in place.

Tell the CoG and the SN Governor that you would like copies of the special needs policies for the school. (these may be on the school website in any case)

tell them you are concerned she is going to have an accident. this is a very real health and safety concern, and you are worried for your daughter's safety. you will be holding the school accountable if anything happens that would have been prevented if the full time support she is entitled to (and they are receiving funding for) was in place.

and cry.

you are being very patient, katy. but now it's time to get upset, and demand some action.

parents who wait very rarely get anything. parents who are noisy and demand action sometimes get it

katy - the school will already use agency staff for substitute teachers if someone rings in sick. this isn't a long term solution, it's to see dd through until the end of term, or until an LSA is recruited to the terms agreed by the LA.

the school will want to keep the sub time to a minimum - it's costly , so it will give them some impetus to recruit, if that's what they are (allegedly) doing...

An advocate can be just a friend, Katy. Someone that doesn't have the absolute emotional involvement that you do.

If it's any consolation, I am out of control with my son - but I have the total support of his school, even with no statement. It's their duty of care to him. I can ask them for "words" with reference to this if you want, that you can use?

katy - they have the funding. they need to get temp staff in immediately for the full 25 hours pw.

they need to use whichever agency they normally use for short term substitute cover.

accept no less.

they can 'recruit' whilst the temp cover from the agency is in place.

the whole point of emergency funding is to provide immediate support. statementing etc takes time - they can recruit a regular LSA as and when required.

this stuff makes me so cross.

Do you know about Parent Partnership? They are run by your LEA but are there to support parents through the nightmare of SEN funding / support. They might be able to provide an advocate.

Just had a read of the other thread. I think that the pertinent thing to say is that, constraints are all very well, but you have not once been assured about the safety of your daughter in the interim. Ask for their risk assessment/risk management. They have a duty of care (and the statement "duty of care" is vital) to your daughter.

I would be trying to tie the school down to exactly what they are going to do to support your dd.

I might ask:

When did / will the funding for 25 hours of support start? If it has already started, I would be asking where that money has gone, because it has been specifically allocated to support your dd.

How is the recuitment process going for getting someone to support your dd? When do they anticipate someone being able to start?

Given her high level of need, how does the school propose to support your dd until a new teaching assistant has been found? (Get them to commit to details here.)

How is the school going to ensure that the TA knows the best way to support your dd? Many schools will have limited experience of how to support kids with visual impairment. It's not just about having someone trail after your dd all day doing everything for her. It's about a TA being used in a targeted way to help your dd.

Your dd needs an IEP. When will this be drawn up? When will it be reviewed? At the end of this term? Or a few weeks into next term?

What other services will be involved? e.g. Is there a advisory teacher service for visual impairment? What can they offer? Can they advise the school? Work with your dd? Help with materials for schoolwork etc.

Statmenting can take a VERY long time. If I were you, I think the priority be ensuring that the school uses the 25 hours of support effectively. In the year it might easily take to get a statement in place, your dd may have recovered.

Good luck.

Blimey Katy. How things change, huh? I remember discussing multi-fuel stoves with you. I also have a recent need to discuss things with my son's school senco.

I think that you are - totally understandably - finding it hard to communicate about your daughter. I know I would in your boots as you don't seem to have the support from what you say.

Have you an advocate to speak for you in a meeting with the senco? If it is so close to you, sometimes it is hard to say what you need to.

I might have this totally around my head, but I think that the actual responsibility for SEN lies solely at the feet of the Head - the SENCO has purely delegated duties. If you don't feel your daughter is getting what she needs from the co-ordinator, it is perhaps time to speak to the head?

I think you sound fantastically organised. Yes get meeting the SENCO done and see what he/she intends to set in place if there is no IEP yet. I could be wrong but I think if they have funding for her and are already doing the PE support and checks on her then they should have an IEP. I shall keep my fingers crossed for you that the SENCO is informative for you and what you hear puts your mind at ease. It must all be such an motional time for you and your daughter is lucky that you are keen to make sure school get it right.Keep us all informed how you get on, all the best xx

Sounds like a plan - there should be no reason why an IEP can't be put in place very quickly. You may be able to get a statement by the end of the year - I think that LEA should process them in 6 weeks (I teach SEN in mainstream, am not a SENCO myself)

Definitly find that out then if they are getting that amount of extra funding and your dd isn't benefitting then there is a big issue and you need to get in touch with whoever is providing the funding, because they won't be happy with it disappearing into the schools budget when it is being provided for a set purpose. It is possible that it isn't the SENCO that is the barrier to the LSA recruitment but the head - I would be asking what they are doing to recruit the LSA and why they haven't got it sorted yet. TBH I would be focusing on practical - what are they doing, what are the problems, what are they planning to do next questions, find out what is and isn't being put in place first, then you can decide whether to hit her with the 'how do you think dd feels?' or not depending on where you get. SEN funding and provision is a nightmare - parents who are well informed get the best help for their children - shouldn't be that way but it is.