To think TAs shouldn't be in the same class are their own child?

[FireUnderpants]

DS is in yr1, he has a permanent medical condition which requires a lot of help at school due to his age. At the start of this school year the school got funding for an extra member to staff to help him.

Absolutely brilliant, we didn't think it would get granted.

The new person is a parent of a child in the same class. Things have not been great. There's been several huge fuck ups and the hospital who provide training are stepping in. Trust has been damaged and its more difficult as it's not 'Mrs xyz' it's 'Random Names mum'.

This sounds really tough and I can see why it makes stuff difficult for you. However, it sounds like your child's health is at risk, so I think you have to push through any potential awkwardness and complain regardless. I can totally see why it adds an extra dimension to the situation, though.

I do actually think the school have messed up a bit here- it is one thing to employ a known member of staff working in their own child's class (although personally, I think it's still to be avoided). However, with a new member of staff, there is always a risk that things won't work out, and it will create awkwardness on all sorts of levels (not just between you and the other parent, but potentially between the parent and the school, too).

Given what you've described, I'm not sure I would be happy with this person continuing to look after my child, and I'd be escalating my complaints very quickly.

My ds (also year 1) has a condition which sounds very similar to your son’s. If it is similar then it can be hard to manage some days and although my son’s school have been great overall there have been times I’ve had to point out when something could have been done better. The TA guessing drug dosage and not reacting to an alarm on device are totally unacceptable, at best she needs more training at worse she is totally incompetent. I understand it being difficult as you know her but your son could be put in real danger. I found it awkward at first saying when I thought someone had made a mistake with my son (and these were only very minor mistakes) but that was only as they generally do a good job and I didn’t want to come across like I was always complaining.

Sorry to hear you're in the same boat RoadrunnerMeepMeep, it is truly fucking relentless. His DSN is already on the case, and I had a phone call from the school Friday which was obviously damage control.

Thank you fireunderpants yes it is relentless and you can’t take your eyes off the ball at all with it. One mistake can have catastrophic consequences. The DSN will sort the problem out with the TA, maybe it’ll make it less awkward if it’s coming from a healthcare professional and not just you.