need help with school (Sen issue)

[helpwithschool]

I don't have much support in real life. Hopefully someone can give me some pointers.

DS is in y9. currently in a PRU whilst we wait for the EHCP to get finalised. He is super bright (ASD with a host of MH challenges) in a small academic setting. Draft plan came through and his mainstream school has said they cannot meet need. We consulted with a few specialist settings (LA, independent, within LA and outside LA) and the response was that either they cannot meet need or they are full). I am trying to get in contact with the EHCP team which is impossible but just wondered what happens now if mainstream cannot meet need and all other alternatives in the area are full?

I haven't seen the final plan yet. so no clue what the LA is planning on doing in terms of naming a school. Can anyone give me any pointers what could/should happen in this scenario?

Home schooling/EOTAS isn't really an option as I cannot afford to give up work.

LAs do have the power to push schools to take certain pupils if they feel that the school is at capacity on paper, but actually has physical and "emotional" room to take the child. They also have a say in whether the school can meet the child's needs. LAs have the responsibility to educate all children, schools only have the responsibility to educate the children in their care. However schools are the way that LAs provide education. So for example the school might say "no child X needs Y and we can't give Y." The LA might come back with "you're the best place we've got for X, so if we help you do W to help you do X, you can take X". Through the EHCP, the LA could provide support to help the school meet the child's needs.

If your son does not have serious behaviour problems, you could also approach general private schools. They can't be directed to take him but some do say yes and can work well for academically able but anxious autistic pupils.

Mainstream private schools are also struggling to full their places at the moment. They generally won't take children who have been excluded etc though...

No behavioural issues at all - all MH/anxiety/ASD related. Have been told by LA that they won't be funding mainstream independent due to cost. i am not able to self fund. Though I think he is too much for such a setting. He needs much smaller class sizes than normal.

Don't want to be too intrusive @helpwithschool but if no behavioural issues, where are they getting the evidence that at his own school his being there would cause disruption to others? Actual evidence as pp has put up thread, no hypothetical things?

I think the disruption of others is down to opening up an extra space. These are small settings for students who cannot cope in classrooms with many peers. Adding DS in would increase the class size and would dilute the concept of having very small class sizes. I get it. If everyone would appeal and succeed, these small classes would soon have 20-30 kids. They said classrooms are small, adding an extra student doesn't only increase the amount of students, but will also mean less physical space for the others... hope it makes sense.

You can push back on this, we proved to the LA that the cost of the small private school that could meet need was actually cheaper than keeping my daughter in mainstream (where she wasn't coping) with a full time LSA. You just have to prove it is a good use of funds and as it was cheaper they couldn't object.

I'd look at mainstream private, they usually publish fees online, then ask your LA again. There's a really, really high chance a mainstream private school will be cheaper than an independent special school. The LA might be reasonable with you here if it will save them money. Many independent special schools cost over £65,000 a year.

*'The types of setting you have a right to request are:

a maintained school or nursery (mainstream or special)
an Academy (mainstream or special)
an institution in the Further Education sector
a non-maintained special school, and
a section 41 school.
Independent settings are not one of those types of settings.

However, this does not mean that you cannot ask for and argue for a place at an independent setting which is not on that list.

If you have found an independent setting you would like your local authority (LA) to consider naming, do check it is a wholly independent setting and not a ‘section 41 approved’ setting or a non-maintained special school. If it is a setting that comes within the list above, then it is one you have the right to request and your LA must name it unless certain limited reasons apply. If it is wholly independent, your LA could still consider naming it as an ‘appropriate’ setting.

If you ask your LA to consider naming an independent setting, your LA must take into account your views, wishes and feelings, and those too of your child if you are a parent making the request for your child. This is set out in section 19 CFA 2014 and includes where the child or young person wants to be educated.'*

DS does not need an LSA. he is insanely bright. He cannot cope in MS due to size/sensory issues/MH. He had a full mental breakdown in MS including 2 suicide attempts and developed autistic burnout. Mainstream is completely out of question. He does not need learning support but a much smaller setting. EP reports states that he needs class sizes of 5-7 students max. cost of MS with LSA v small setting does not come into it as MS cannot remotely meet need.

But cost of mainstream private vs independent specialist does come into it.

Although private mainstream schools won't have class sizes of 7.

Have been told by LA that they won't be funding mainstream independent due to cost.

That doesn’t mean you can’t appeal for an independent school (either special or mainstream - although the latter won’t have class sizes of 5-7) once you have the right of appeal. If it is wholly independent, you would need an offer of a place from the independent school, but you don’t need to LA to agree.

The bar to prove incompatibility with the provision of efficient education for others is higher than many LAs and schools admit. It is more than an “adverse effect”, “impact on” or “prejudicial to”.