Awaiting _____ diagnosis

[Bozzul]

I work in a school and we obviously have pupils with SEND, who have certain strategies we use with them and a number of others to monitor and trial things to include them.

All of them have attached documents to let staff know what's needed, but there's currently a trend for adding a sentence to say huge numbers of pupils are awaiting a diagnosis - awaiting dyslexia diagnosis, awaiting ADHD diagnosis etc.

They're not. They're still awaiting being assessed, and often because someone unqualified to judge has decided it's possible or suits them. But it might not be the case that a diagnosis is made (I'm thinking that the chances our school have such numbers compared to national data aren't high)

I'm all for doing what works for each child, and if they have tendencies that are normally addressed in a certain way, then of course these things can be used to help them too, but I don't think it's helpful to staff or pupils to imply issues which haven't been diagnosed.

Edited, helpful TO either staff or pupils

I get what you mean OP. I work in a secondary school and I’m always surprised at parents who start the assessment process when their child is 15/16. Like, how were there no signs before when the child has been in education for over 10 years?!!! I do wonder if it is puberty/substance issues/family issues or a whole host of other things but SEND is often the first thing sought.

I have a friend who is now as an adult due to be an assessed for autism and adhd, who raised no concerns during her schooling. But had terrible substance abuse issues at 15.

these substance issues would have come about from the fact she felt like an alien, but trying all the time to fit in. You don’t know what you don’t know.

OP’s posts are goady, but the legal definition of SEN as set out in section 20 of the Children and Families Act 2014 does not include ESL. Nor things like poverty.

Sometimes 'work in a school' is code for teacher not fancying the usual teachers are shit stories, or a governance professional with an extensive knowledge of Law and how it relates to SEND, a Data Manager who knows how important it is to use the correct phrasing and terminology to get correct outcomes, a Business Manager who is responsible for both the day to day functioning of an organisation of two hundred employees, a budget in the millions and is aware of the vital importance of using correct terminology to ensure the school operates within legal boundaries - or it could be somebody who can see that 'Awaiting x diagnosis' is as potentially problematic for a child is as a doctor recording 'Awaiting affective disorder diagnosis' when somebody has gone to them with symptoms consistent with anything from anaemia to metastatic cancer.

It's fine to address needs without a formal diagnosis. The difficulty arises where they make the diagnosis - once it's there saying that the kid is awaiting ODD diagnosis, for example, that can halt the possibility of somebody realising that the child is actually acting out from abuse. Or in extremis, an abusive member of staff putting something on there that increases the likelihood that any disclosure made by a child is likely to be disbelieved.

Language is so important - the woolliness in Sex and Gender is an example of this, as it's now impossible to know which is meant in any data.

In this case, it should be 'Awaiting x assessment'. It doesn't change the needs, but is far more accurate than presenting it as a done deal, the kid definitely has x.

Mine sailed through primary. Not an issue. Early signs of things amiss in year 7. Anxiety etc sky high in year 8. Self harm, suicide attempt. So unwell, that she isn't even in school anymore. It's not that uncommon esp with high functioning girls. She managed to mask in primary but the complexity of a huge abd crowded secondary are just too much. I hope you are not a teacher!

You've misunderstood the OP. Their issue is with the word diagnosis when the students may not be diagnosed with anything. They are awaiting assessment, not diagnosis

It is not your place to decide which pupils require SEP to be made for them &/or reasonable adjustments. Neither is it your place to decide what SEP &/or reasonable adjustments are required.

Exam access arrangements are governed by JCQ’s guidelines. If you think any school is guilty of malpractice, you should report them. But just because you disagree with the EAA doesn’t make them guilty of malpractice.

Bloody hell!! If that's your view on SEN children OP then you need to hand your notice in on Monday.

The OP’s subsequent posts show this isn’t their primary concern.

the op has made it very clear that this isn't a post about semantics!

I was a very seemingly unobvious autistic child given I only received my diagnosis at 29 and I can 100% tell you with certainty that not having any reasonable adjustments at all because it was only "suspected" by a few select individuals highly contributed to my CPTSD as an adult, so I really think you're highly unqualified and spouting bollocks if you think it's only the obvious high support needs children that deserve accommodating. If it is suspected in any capacity it should be accomodated.

@Ribenaberry12 because many children cope just fine until they get overloaded with demands and they can't cope anymore. For some with a lower threshold that happens at nursery, for others the transition to Infants or Juniors but for a large swathe that's High school age.

It is very common for autism not to be diagnosed until the later stages of High school, partially because lots of autistic traits can be put down to expected development times - until they last beyond that point. And then the culmination of bigger school, poorer behaviour of peers, loud corridors and canteens, moving around the school add exams and hormones in the mix and it's the perfect cocktail of overload.

The vast majority of parents to autistic or ADHD children are likely to have the condition themselves whether they know it or not and therefore the behaviour is completely normal for the family. So it's not until school pick up on it - and that can take a while with the different teachers and never getting to know your group as well as say a Primary class teacher would.

Or 'busybody TA, who thinks they're more qualified to run the school than the entire SLT'.

I've had the misfortune to work with a couple of these over the years.

Our experience was very similar to @Sheepsandcows sadly. DD15 officially diagnosed just a few weeks ago, only spent a year on the waiting list as she was bumped up due to MH issues and distress. We never said she was awaiting diagnosis though, we said she was on the NHS pathway for an autism assessment.

She's still burnt out and currently not in school due to trying to cope in a large noisy secondary school.

@Saturdayssandwichsociety maybe, just maybe they could change the schooling system, change assessments to course work and make the whole school experience less overwhelming.

I think people are jumping on the OP without bothering to understand her concerns.
She said that the students with a definite diagnosis are going to miss out because of the students who might or might not have a diagnosis, some of which aren’t even on a pathway yet.
It will not be possible to provide individual rooms for 17 kids to take exams, therefore the ones with a firm diagnosis will have to share and will not have their needs met. It will not be possible to provide quiet/time out spaces for 17, therefore the ones who really need it might not be able to access it, there will be limited resources, access to TAs, access to resource rooms etc, and if the ‘market’ is flooded with students who are ‘awaiting’, then the ones with the firm diagnosis will have to compete and will miss out. The estimate for ND children is 15-20%. Over 50% in a class is unlikely.

Support in schools is based on needs, not diagnosis.

@Bozzul you'd be spitting feathers if you knew that my DD3, who had no diagnosis at all, was given as much time as she wanted in the SEN block, her own area in the SEN space, allowed to leave class whenever she wanted, mock exams in her own room and allowed to do the exams as soon as she arrived at school instead of following the exam timetable, then allowed to go home straight after. She was allowed complete non-attendance without sanctions. Then the LA gave her a place at an independent special school where she gets a bespoke timetable with 1:1 teaching at all times. All the while, no diagnosis, just 'awaiting assessment/diagnosis'.

She's since been diagnosed with OCD (6 month wait for assessment, no treatment yet), and her ASD assessment was almost 2 weeks ago (no result yet) after a 2 year wait).

If kids have needs, it just isn't practical to wait for a diagnosis before giving the support they need.

I think it would unlikely 17 of 30 children are genuinely neuro diverse. Surely it delays the diagnosis of those in the greatest need of support if over 50% of children (going by these numbers) are waiting for an assessment.

@Bozzul in the kindest possible way, as the mother of a child who was diagnosed with ADHD aged 17, after developing anxiety and depression which led to self harm and about whom no school ever raised a concern because she was high functioning and well parented, may I gently suggest that you raise your concerns with the professionally qualified class teacher or your school's senior leadership team. They will be able to advise and support you rather better than MNet.

When my DC were at school the TA's remit was to intervene about a lost Jersey or a grazed knee. Not educational achievement or clinicial need. Hopefully it has stayed that way.

Support is offered without diagnosis & quite rightly so. I think sometimes people find it easier to understand at a glance suspected autism over a list of support needs so possibly why it says what it does. My DD has had an initial assessment with camhs, they've agreed she has autistic traits. The waiting time will be years. She feels she is autistic & I agree. We do say awaiting diagnosis. People have more patience when they understand why support is needed. At my DD high school something like 60% have ASN. Sometimes the separate room is to benefit unaffected students as well. DD has a bowel condition & would potentially disrupt the exam for everyone by going to the toilet multiple times.

None of that is the OP's problem though is it, they aren't SLT.

Sounds like SLT is doing a reasonable job.

I use this phrase to describe my daughter otherwise they treat her like any other kid. To be fair the school are very sympathetic towards her when she struggles

Given that for autism and ADHD the diagnostic percentage is somewhere between less than 2 and 4% in the uk population, and given that women are likely to be diagnosed with either of these either in their teenage years or adulthood compared to male peers, so we're quite far off 51% although I do think the statistics could be higher when considering the undiagnosed or on pathway figures, though not by such a significant amount.

Children with SEN may or may not be ND, many may have other disabilities, needs, trauma, or may have these as comorbidities to their SEN, and so I would expect the overall school population with SEN to be higher.

Neurodivergence also covers any other neurological disability whether that's dyslexia, dyspraxia, epilepsy, ptsd etc which widens the pool of ND%.

Absence of a formal diagnosis is not an absence of need or condition and help should not be reserved for the lucky or privileged who have managed to secure a diagnosis.

There is a lack of available support for SEND children and the more children that need that support the more thinly it is stretched but that does not make any of these children less deserving it means there isn't sufficient funding or resource. Proactive support should be offered to children before significant mental health struggles occur.

In this instance the OP isn't qualified to judge who should have that support.