Can we just stop trying to define 'genuine' SEN especially those posters who obviously have no experience of the SEN system. There are hundreds of thousands of children who do not have statements but have special educational needs as defined by the law.
From the SEN Code of Practice (this is a statutory instrument)
'Children have SEN if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for them.
Children have a learning difficulty if they:
a) have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age; or
b) have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age in schools within the area of the local education authority or
c) are under compulsory school age and fall within the definition at (a) or (b) above or would do so if special educational provision was not made for them.'
I'd like to meet one of these mythical parents who like to 'label' their children as having SEN without the child actually having any. Because, it is such a laugh and the extra support, funding, parties and merriment is sooooo abundant that it really makes it worthwhile! [hmmm]
Bollocks methinks. There is no way that you can judge whether a child, especially a child that is NOT your own but you just observe from a far/make judgments based on a conversation you overheard at the school gates, has SEN as defined by the SEN Code of Practice - which is the basis for implementing the graduated level of response from School Action to SA+ to a Statement of SEN.
What is with Mumsnet these days - so many threads where people are posting the weirdest things about children with SN