Private High Schools - local authority paying - PLAC

[4april2018]

Hi

Anyone have any advice/tips on how to get our local authority to pay for our child to go to a private high school?

Child is ASD/AHDH and PLAC. No EHCP in place but trying to get one

Any hints or tips would greatly appreciated as I am expecting a battle

x

The only way they would pay is if your child has such specifuc needs that they could only be met by that school. Which will be very difficult to demonstrate and I doubt you would get it funded without an EHCP.
What are the other options? Many children with ASD/ADHD manage in mainstream or special sschools.Can you evidence why the state schools can't meet their needs.
A friend of mine did manage to get funding but they lived very rurally and had very few options, but it was a hell if a fight.

Hi @4april2018 , I don't have personal experience with my own children but have several friends who's children go to independant schools funded by the LA, as well as professional experience of working with some families who have. In our (small) LA there are probably a couple of dozen children who have this arrangement.

Before I type out an answer and it's not relavant(!):
-assuming its a mainstream independent school you're looking for, not a specialist provision?
-what are the main reasons you're seaking an independent school rather than state?

The independent school we are looking at is very small and nurturing, it is mainstream

Our child is where they should be academically at school but oh my days they struggle to regulate themselves and emotionally they really struggle, they really struggle to make and maintain friendships and will do anything for anyone saying "I will be your friend if you mess around in class/ hit/be mean to such and such". They have been suspended from primary school twice this year (currently in yr 4). School are resisting doing an EHCP as academically everything is hunky dory so I am trying again this term and will start the process myself.

The head says our child will be bored and disruptive in a special school for ASD/ADHD and we know they will get lost/struggle or constantly be in trouble in the large main stream high schools in our area. Our child is easily lead and our fear is they will end up in the wrong crowd

I will have to start gathering evidence and reasons to demonstrate reasons why we want the independent school rather that state school

The only way to get a private school funded is via an ehc. But the chances of getting a mainstream private school funded are tiny.

You can apply yourself for an ehc but you will be turned down for sure as you don't have support from the school.

I was in that situation in year 5 and I got the ehc AND private specialist provision (not mainstream though).

Anyway, due to the lack of support from the school, I had to gather my own evidence. Private OT, SALT and Ed Psych reports.

I used an org called SOS!SEN and I suggest you contact them for advice.

My daughter went to a specialist speech and language school. A lot of the kids went on to university. It is a fallacy for the head to suggest that all specialist schools aren't challenging academically, though I guess you might not have suitable provision locally.

But anyway, with the ehc process you cannot pre choose a school. The assessment is supposed to identify needs and the correct placement comes out of that.

I would also mention that private schools are often not good with sen and will seek to deroll children who don't fit their model. They are not keen on complaints from other parents and they don't have the support available in other schools.

I understand. Our LA does fund mainstream independent schools for some children who are broadly managing academically but need a small and nurturing school, they do this for some children for whom it's cheaper to place them there than in a specialist setting, but most of these children have secured places via tribunals and parents & professionals evidencing that there are no other appropriate settings at all.

You will absolutely need an EHCP that names the type of provision needed, I hope the parental application for the EHCP goes well. I also wouldn't believe what the head says about specialist provisions, there are specialist provisions for children such as your son and it's wrong to assume he will be bored, why would he be if it's the right provision for him both pastorally and acedemically? Those types of schools exist. It doesn't sound like he's coping currently if he's had two suspensions this academic year. Not knowing what the suspensions related to, Independent schools are often reluctant to admit children with needs around behaviour, one of the schools here that admits pupils via EHCPs and funded by the LA said that they had well over 150 parents enquire and ask to name them on the EHCP for year 7, I think in the end it was under 5 pupils they admitted, they can afford to be picky and don't want to lose their reputation/fee paying parents.

I would seek out support from organisations like https://sossen.org.uk/ and https://www.ipsea.org.uk/ although there are lots of others. Also visit other provisions to get a feel of what things there are, and what that support might look like for your child. Also the records from some ASF work can be good evience that you wouldn't have otherwise, e.g. my daughter had a sensory assessment through the ASF which while the purpose was to help inform support and planning around her sensory needs it was also additional evidence for her EHCP.

My son has a similar profile to yours but with the addition of being very far behind academically, although very bright in a non-academic way. He attends an independent mainstream primary funded by the local authority. Although it is technically not a specialist setting they have a very high proportion of SEN children and a very nurturing approach with small classes.

It's not something I set out to try to achieve. It's more where we landed after years in mainstream state primary where every day was a struggle, in spite of having an EHCP. When he was on a reduced timetable at school, with the LA paying ££££ on alternative provision to plug the gaps, I convinced his mainstream state primary to finally put in writing that they couldn't meet his needs. We then consulted with various specialist placements who all, quite rightly I think, said that they didn't think they could meet his needs either, but it felt like that needed to happen if only to rule them out. There was only one option left and that was the independent school that I had also asked to be included in the consultation and that just happened to be brilliant for him.

In addition, the fees for the mainstream independent school, even with a bit extra added on top for some extra support, would cost the local authority less than some of the specialist schools, and they are certainly cheaper than EOTAS, which is what I had asked the local authority for, but it feels like you need to fail in far more than one setting before they will agree to that. So in the end the independent was a bit of no-brainer. While it didn't feel like much of an administrative fight, we certainly went through the mill in being in the wrong school for too long..

Apart from needing to secure an EHCP, you should really look into what is out there in terms of the different types of specialist schools before you rule them out. I agree with what others have said, in that there are many types of specialist school. Some of them are very academic and pupils are expected to be performing at least to age-related expectations in order to even be considered. You may find one to be a better fit than the independent school you have your eye on.

Hi what I should add about the specialist school bit is that we are in Surrey which is in crisis due to the lack of specialist education places.

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I'm not in Surrey, but I am in an area deemed to be 'in crisis' in terms of SEN services and SEN school places. Even knowing this in advance, it still felt like going through the motions in consulting them was a necessary part of the process just to prove that they are not viable options. One school told me that they get over one thousand EHCPs sent to them every year, and the school size was about 30. Others had waiting lists of over six months for parent tours.

You can certainly state your preferred school, but don't be surprised if you are still expected to 'consider' the schools that are already full though, and they may still be consulted. If there are state secondary schools in your area with an ASD unit attached they may well point you to those too. The first battle will be to convince the LA that mainstream state doesn't/won't work for your child. If you can't do that they will still name a mainstream school.

If you are in north Surrey you could look at Canbury in Kingston or Blossom House in Motspur Park. But you would need good ehc plans to get Surrey to pay for them. Try SOS!Sen. They are based in Hampton and know your area well.

Will def look at these schools. Thanks for the tips x

Don't be scared off Blossom House btw. It will be much more special needs than you think your daughter needs. But if you get OT and SALT assessments, you might be really surprised.