Child diagnosed autistic. What will they give us?

[idontneedhelpyoudo]

Child is diagnosed ASD. Obviously back to school in September. Aged 8 type 1 (formally aspergers).

The actual diagnosis is new. What help can I expect they will give us?

Ideally some 1-1 time at school would be great but probably not feasible.

Will they maybe look at how best to teach him and see if there's ways it can be more clear?
I just have no idea what to expect really.

Will they help with social skills/ friendship groups.

We're obviously doing that at home but I just have no idea what help we will get from school.

From my experience (with a son who was diagnosed aged 2.5 and now attends an autism specific specialist school) the school won’t give you anything unless you fight for it yourselves. Google ehcps and use the various charities for autism for advice. We were told our son would never get an ehcp and never get into specialist school. We applied ourselves and fought with the council every step of the way. He is now thriving. I’m not saying your child needs a specialist place- every child is different but if you think they would benefit from help in school don’t wait for the school to approach you, you should approach the school.

You need to have a read of the IPSEA website OP.

The school should receive a copy of the diagnosis, and will use that plus their own knowledge of the child to plan in any support needed. Support could be a 1:1 in class to help with the work, 1:1 time out of the classroom to develop specific skills, an adult supporting them with socialising at play and lunch, it could be adapted work in the lessons. There's so much that can be done, and they will have an obligation to make sure this is in place.

As the PP said, you will have to chase it. Arrange a meeting as soon as school starts to get them to lay out for you what support will be put in place. Ask for copies of all support plans etc. They should be reviewed termly, with short achievable targets. Make sure they keep logs of everything as you will need the paperwork for moving forward for eg an ehcp. We use 'assess, do, plan, review' forms, recording everything the child struggles with, what we put in place to support, and the impact that it had. We fill these in daily. You can also ask for copies of this. You can ask for copies of anything to do with your child!

Depends where you are as to the level of support you will receive (both as a family and for your child).
Make an appointment to speak to the SENCO asap once school reopens.

What help do you think he needs? A diagnosis does not automatically mean 1:1. Some children with ASD do not need 1:1. They might however need a quiet space to go to at lunch and break times. Once you have thought about what aspects of school your ds finds difficult because of his aspergers, you then need to make an appointment with the SENCO to discuss these. You need to find out what help they can offer him. If you feel he needs more intervention than the school are willing to / are able to provide then you need to apply for an assessment of need to see if he can get an EHCP. The EHCP should list what help he needs and a good one will specify what the school needs to provide to meet his needs.

Make sure the school has a copy of paperwork - diagnosis and any other reports. Presumably your child has seen some combination of a Paediatrician/SALT/OT/CAMHS. Have they specified what your child will find difficult or need help with at school? Or if not, could you seek their advice in writing to give to the school?

As others have said, though, look in to getting an EHCP for your child. This will give some legal basis to requests for support, as well as provide the school with extra funding.
It is unlikely your child will get 1:1 support without it.

You will undoubtedly have to push for this. It can be overwhelming and exhausting, so do seek advice from organisations like IPSEA and on the SN forums here 💐

OP, there is a good chance the school wont do much. You need to learn about your rights and be prepared to fight for everyone of them. As well as looking at IPSEA, google the SEN code of practice and there is a whole section on what schools should do.

There is no standard for 'autistic'

Your child should get any extra support that they need. I access this easily in Scotland but I believe you have to jump through several hoops in England to get a care plan in place before they will do anything. I read about it all the time on Mumsnet. It seems like everyone has to fight so hard for their children.

Good luck

You now need to become very well aquanted with the school senco. Talk to him/her about an EHCP. Firmly request that your child is assessed in school by an educational psychologist. This is the first step to gaining an EHCP.

Be prepared to fight.

It should be about need rather than a diagnosis. Plenty of autistic children need adjustments such as quiet spaces to go to during busy times, visual timetables, interventions to support their social communication etc. Teachers should be trained in strategies to support him in the class so they know to support him and don’t just apply whole school behaviour policies blindly.

Not many pupils need an additional adult sat next to them all day.

How has he been getting on at school? What are your concerns? Start with this. Just because he has a diagnosis, it doesn’t mean that he is the same as other children who are autistic. I would have a think about what you think he needs based on how he is at school, how he is when he comes home etc then meet with the SENCo to discuss.