AIBU to be annoyed with school over this ?

[MyPandaisasecretmonster]

Ds (almost 6) attends a free school which he has attended since he was 3 (nursery) it is a small school , 13 students per class .
Ds has ADHD & Aspergers .

Two days before the holidays just gone we received a letter saying they were starting a school mini bus for students without transport & who struggle to get to school so I sent a letter back the next day explaining how much I struggle getting Ds to school because of his problems.
Such as I can't use public transport because Ds has no concept of danger & he just runs in to roads in front of traffic also goes mad if somebody is in his seat on the bus .
So I have taken to using a taxi everyday to get him their and back which is a struggle as he opens the doors and sticks his head out of the window , the Taxis are costing me £11 a day we can't walk as its too far and I can't change his school as he would not cope in a mainstream school .

I didn't hear anything back from the school so I spoke to the Headteacher today & it turns out they already chose the students for the mini bus a week before sending the letter out , all the students that were chosen don't have special needs and all live within walking distance to the school & previously were taken by their parents in cars .

So AIBU to wonder why Ds wasn't offered/ given a seat when I barely manage to get him to school in one piece everyday yet the letter that was sent home stated that it was for 'children in need' which I & several other parents took to mean those without their own transport and those with special needs ?

[clam]

In that case, if free schools can't make up the rules as they go along,then kick up a massive stink.
Ask to see the criteria by which they selected the chosen few. Ask how it can possibly be that a letter was sent out inviting parents to apply for something that actually wasn't available. Don't be fobbed off with "oh, but it's too late now."
Actually, they ought to scrap the plan and start again. If that's difficult or embarrassing for them, then maybe they'll think harder before they do such a thing again. It's not on!

[constantlyconfused]

Thats really out of order its false advertising if they'd already decided which breaks a few rules . DD has ADHD and her name never seems to be on any list to go on trips treats etc apart from when ofsted visited when she had a "trip" every day they were in.Coincidence i think not.

[clam]

Wasn't ITV in a lot of trouble when they advertised phone-in competitions that had closed? Isn't this the same principle?

[SuburbanRhonda]

still waiting on my Ds official diagnosis/statement

OP, is your DS going through what used to be called statutory assessment then? Have you any idea when his Education and Healthcare Plan (formerly Statement of SEN) is expected? Has the Senco at the school explained to you what his primary need is?

It's just that having a diagnosis does not automatically lead to an EHP. We have children in our school with ASD, ADHD, SLCN and other needs but they don't all have an EHP.

[Minerves]

did you explain in your letter that the problems your son has on regular busses wouldn't be a problem on the school minibus? Because if the school don't know he wouldnt' behave the same way on the minibus, i.e. when someone takes 'his' seat, then i see why they may not want the liability of transporting him without you.

[TheEnchantedForest]

Is it a free school that has been set up by parents? So they are the 'founding members' of the school?
perhaps it is the children of those parents who have been allocated the places? this does happen with some free schools run by parents not professionals.
they can make sure their children are at a catagory at the top of the admissions code etc.

[maddy68]

I am guessing that this is funded by pupil premium and only pupils bringing in pupil premium would be entitled to use it. They have probably sent out a letter to avoid the stigma attached potentially .

They can ONLY allocate the funding to those pp students

[SuburbanRhonda]

As a PP has said, schools have to declare on their website how they allocate their pupil premium, though it might be retrospective so if this is a new initiative it might be on the website next year.

[MyPandaisasecretmonster]

It's not run by parents I know that much .

Their is no SENCO at the school so not really sure what to do about LA etc

The school no my Ds' problems do not present at school or while with people from school

[BlackbirdOnTheWire]

Love the fact that a pp has questioned the amount paid for a taxi. 25 mins walk would cost a hell of a lot more than £5.50 taxi round here! It was £14 last time I got a cab for a journey of that length (and only got a cab as I was on my own late at night thanks to screwed-up trains).

OP, I'd put something in writing to the governors as well as the Head, asking for the criteria for the selection to be made transparent, as well as disclosure of the timeframe involved (I.e. The selection process was complete before the letter was sent out), plus a full breakdown of how the minibus costs are met. There is no way that the school should be using school funds to provide a service for a few UNLESS they have a specific need and there is provision in the budget, eg pupil premium. If it turns out that a few parents requested it, they're stumping up the cash and there were a couple of spaces left to fill to spread the cost further, so it was done on distance, there's not much you can do apart from find out if anyone near you wants to try similar. Maybe even just share a taxi if the company can guarantee same driver, etc.

[BlackbirdOnTheWire]

X-post as had to deal with DS in middle of writing. But maybe some points still stand!

[m0therofdragons]

Is it to do with pupil premium kids?

[m0therofdragons]

Sorry just read a bit more of the thread. Ignore me.

[Missunreasonable]

blackbird I questioned the taxi cost because £5.50 would be over two miles where I live and over 2 miles = eligibility for free school transport.

It all makes more sense now that OP has explained that the school used to be a private school which has converted to a free school.

[SuburbanRhonda]

There is no Senco at the school

WTF, OP?

Who is carrying out the statutory assessment you spoke about upthread if not a Senco? How on earth do they hope to write an IEP, carry out annual reviews, etc. if your DS ends up being given an Education and Healthcare Plan?

How do they currently support children with SEN without a Senco? I have heard of small schools where the Head is also the Senco, but aside from the fact that yours seems to be too busy driving the minibus to take on another role, they do have to be a qualified Senco to do the job. Maybe your Head is?

[SuburbanRhonda]

You do not automatically become eligible for free home to school transport just because your school is over a proscribed distance, at least not in my LA. If there is a space in a nearer school, you would be expected to go there.

Slightly different if the school is named on a statement (now called Education and Healthcare Plan). Then you would be eligible if the school was over the distance.

[Missunreasonable]

Yes surburbanrhonda the two miles does relate to the nearest suitable school but if the OPs son has SN she could argue that it is the nearest suitable school because a move to a nearer school would be detrimental to his learning and stability.

[greygeese]

I'd class a 25 minute walk as being within walking distance. Not sure why a bus or taxi is needed.

And if the children going on the school minibus are from different areas presumably they live further than 25 mins walk away?

[Missunreasonable]

*I'd class a 25 minute walk as being within walking distance. Not sure why a bus or taxi is needed.^

OPs son has SN and no sense of danger, hence 25 mins is a different kettle of fish and might as well be 15 miles.

[SuburbanRhonda]

Mis, the OP could try that argument, but until her DS has an Education and Healthcare Plan in place that names his school, she would have no actual evidence that his education would be compromised by moving to a nearer school.

[Missunreasonable]

You do need some evidence but not necessarily an education and healthcare plan or statement of SEN. A paediatrician will be able to provide a report if there is one involved with the child. The school itself can also support an application for the transport whilst the assessment process is ongoing. It won't be easy, but it isn't impossible. I do wonder how much experience the OPs school will have of statutory assessment processes and seeking additional funding though seeing as it is a free school which has recently converted from a private school.

[eddiemairswife]

25 minutes to walk 2 miles would be pushing it for an adult ,so it is unlikely that the OP lives over 2 miles from the school.The free transport might only amount to a bus pass for the child.

[SuburbanRhonda]

I've supported many applications for transport and also forwarded copies of letters from paediatricians for the same purpose. It has never worked so far because you need to demonstrate that the child's primary learning or social/behavioural need can only be met by that school or one with similar provision.

IMO, without an EHP it would be impossible to prove you have carried out a sufficiently robust assessment to prove this. A letter from the paed will only say what the diagnosis is and may make some suggestions for how to support this child's needs in school (but not always).

As a slight aside, I am confused as to whether the OP's DS has already had an assessment. On the one hand, her OP States that he has ADHD and Aspergers. On the other hand, she says he is awaiting a formal diagnosis and statement. And if there could be a a third hand, it would be that IME it's very unusual for both ADHD and Aspergers to be present in one setting and not at all in another. They may present differently, but basically if your child has these diagnoses, they have them, not just in one setting.

[MyPandaisasecretmonster]

My Ds will have his Statement etc after his next appointment in the New Year .
He has both ADHD & Aspergers .

He was given a provisional diagnosis 2 months ago as he had a few other appointments that he needed to be seen at before a proper diagnosis/statement could be given.

[MyPandaisasecretmonster]

He does not have them in just one setting he has them everywhere but school as it is a familiar & controlled environment .