Will LA fund independent school place for ASD child?

[Ricecakesaremyjam]

Son is 5, diagnosis of autism and ADHD. Has an EHCP, in mainstream reception, on a heavily reduced timetable of 2hrs a day with a 1:1, school have said they can’t meet needs and are plainly desperate to get rid of him.
School that is my preference and would meet his needs and is very local is an independent.
How likely is my LA to fund this? If his needs are not being met and he is literally not in school?

I am absolutely broken on my knees with this shit 😫

@Namechanger385u4p Hi, yes he has started meds for his ADHD.

Re latter part of your post. A very very expensive independent provision wholly funded by LA money (ie independent but no parents actually paid money to the school) that I worked in only actually had 3 kids from the local
authority Area it was in, it was filled with out of area kids, the local authority decided it had stopped paying out for it and only funded additional provision through mainstream. Not right of course but can happen that they deem it unnecessary spending, we had one 6 yo start who was very local to the school and were all gobsmacked, basically they’d fought tooth and nail for it after 2 years of hell in mainstream

This is far from unusual with his diagnosis and at his age. I think you may be putting the cart before the horses to be thinking only a private sen provision will be able to suit him. There is a whole world of combinations of support and setting before you get to that point. Which may just be more of a watch and wait in his current setting with adaptations out in place… they sound a little presumptuous to be saying they can’t handle him already, when he is only 5 and presumably only in yr R or 1?

So I worked with year 1/2 in a provision with 7 kids per class and 4 adults and this was as many staff as we were ‘allowed’ at that age it was deemed that despite them having very clear needs (non verbal, in nappies etc) 1:1 at all times in the school day wasn’t feasible and this was in a school with kids that had 3:1 ratios so soooo many staff as you can imagine. Realistically could you discuss him having ACCESS to 1:1 but being instead in a small group maybe 1:2, when in the school building, in a specialist provision with necessary safety features etc his needs woukd be being met very differently than in a mainstream (ie dangers at every bloody turn!) primary building - security of building, less kids around etc . I’m wondering if saying he needs 1:1 all times as well as the specialist aspect with his age they will faff you about

I posted this on your other thread but 1:1 can be given in units. It would need to be in the EHCP and you may need to appeal, but it is possible.

@KindLemur parents may have to appeal to get a school named in section I, but once it is there, the parents can force the LA to fund it via JR if necessary.

DS2 went to a specialist independent and it actually turned out cheaper than the maintained specialist school when things like ot and salt were included. The independent school had onsite ot and salt so were included in the fee, bit the maintained one still had to have bought in additional therapy and extra q to 1 time to deliver it.
His ehcp was well worded around tge provision of ot and who delivered it though.

I feel they also considered transport costs, even though it's different budgets.

Yes my ds was funded for a place at an independent specialist school (around 40 minutes drive from us. The LA provided transport too.). He was in mainstream primary but it all fell apart in year 7 when he started to attend the local mainstream secondary. We ended up getting private SALT and OT reports, both of which strongly recommended (they knew that this is what we wanted) the independent specialist school where ds eventually got a place.

It's such a tough process, I really feel for you.

As others have said, it’s a postcode lottery unfortunately. Are you able to say who your LEA is? You might get better advice from experience if you state the LEA.

@Bleachbum my LA is Surrey who I frequently hear are notorious 😫

@Barrenfieldoffucks Hi, he is only in reception and has never actually done a full day there, despite the EHCP/1:1, he isn’t allowed to join anything such as the nativity etc, it’s all really sad and just wrong.

If his attendance is so poor, have you challenged this part as a starting point.

Part time attendance needs to be well planned, documented, agreed and time limited. Is this the case? Has progress been made to increase his attendance (and therefore provision)? What are the plans by his school to educate him appropriately and increase his attendance?

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66bf300da44f1c4c23e5bd1b/Working_together_to_improve_school_attendance_-_August_2024.pdf

Anything other is illegal exclusion, which you should challenge.

Is he is part days, every day? He maybe better to be absent as the LA has to provide a suitable education, after 15 days.

He started off on a part time timetable of 2hrs which I initially agreed to for the early weeks, so as not to overwhelm him with the transition to school. This was increased painfully slowly until he reached 3hrs. His behaviour then became more disruptive and his time in school was abruptly reduced back down to 2hrs, where it remains.
school have said they are unwilling to
increase his hours and I need to find another setting for him.
There are very few maintained specialist schools within an hour of our home and the ones I have contacted have advised they are oversubscribed in all year groups.
Does this mean there is more chance of the LA therefore considering the independent specialist on my doorstep that could meet need?

And sorry yes he is in every day but for a minimal amount of time.

Have you spoken to the SENDiass service in Surrey. I actually found them very good. But this was 4 years ago.

Your child has the right to a full time education. He isn't getting that.

I don't think you should concern yourself with chances at this stage. You just have to plough through the process which will probably start with an emergency review of his ehcp. Make sure that's really good, that the professional reports are right, its specified and quantified well. As this will be important whatever happens.

He has had the review meeting and school have said they can’t meet need, aren’t willing to have him in school more than 2hrs and they recommend specialist school.

No, I don't think this jumps from where you are to ‘independent specialist school’, otherwise think of the amount of children who would be in this provision ( and the huge costs).

Process involves the current school and SEN LA team supporting them to meet need. There maybe consideration of another mainstream school/unit that can meet need.
I think you need to arm yourself with much more information about the process, including the legalities.

"We ended up getting private SALT and OT reports, both of which strongly recommended (they knew that this is what we wanted) the independent specialist school where ds eventually got a place."

That is highly unethical and the sort of behaviour that gives private practitioners a bad name. Practitioners should never name a particular school, only the type of school. Otherwise they are not "independent" as they claim, their opinion is effectively being "bought" by the parent.

I have both visited and contacted several high coin units within an hours radius of our house and they too are also full or have said they could not meet his needs as he is too self directed and needs too much supervision.

@Ricecakesaremyjam
I don't know what "high coin" that you keep saying means.

However, the chances of the LA offering an independent specialist school to a 5 year old who is verbal and academically capable, without any kind of fight, is very small. You would probably have to go to tribunal.

Firstly they would need to look at EP advice on what sort of setting would meet his need.

If your child was in my area the likely next option would be to look at the mainstream schools with units for autistic /SEMH children and see if one of those could meet needs. If not, the next band would be the state funded specialist settings.

In my area the kids who get indie specialist without a fight are the ones where the child has been through LA controlled specialist and they can no longer meet needs. There are other children in the indies without that history, but usually those places are gained via tribunal.

His first EHCP was last year and the EP had said to me to “try him in mainstream” - I now look back and think I bet it he was recommended to try mainstream because it’s the cheapest option, and if I’m honest all of this has been a real journey of acceptance, and a year ago I was struggling to accept he could need specialist school and was hopeful with the support of an EHCP and a 1:1 he would cope.
He started mainstream and it’s been an absolute shocker - his EHCP has never been followed and he’s literally never allowed in.

Every single place I have contacted, whether it’s maintained specialist or mainstream with a unit attached for ASD kids, have said they are full. No spaces. So where does that leave him other than to go to an independent school? He has to go somewhere?

An EP hasn’t been involved in his annual review, it’s just been the class teacher and the SENCO who said he hasn’t made progress and to keep all section F stuff the same but request a change of placement to specialist.

Would a different mainstream that actually followed his EHCP make a difference, do you think?

I really think sendiass is the best bet for some advice on how to get the process moving along. Judicial review might even be appropriate as he isn't getting a full time education.

I can't really understand if the LA have said they are looking to reissue the ehcp and are consulting with special schools or not as the school recommending special, isnt the same thing as the LA agreeing!

I wish you all the best as I have been in this position and it's an exhausting process.

Despite what Surrey thinks, the law applies equally to them. Although it may take an appeal and then enforcement.

It would help you to read SOSSEN and IPSEA’s websites so you can start to understand the actual law rather than what the school and LA want you to believe.

You do not have to allow the school to continue to act unlawfully. DS is entitled to attend school full-time unless the school formally suspends him. And, if DS is not yet CSA, you are also entitled to send him part time, but more than he is if you wish - but this would be your decision, not the school's decision.

However, the LA may not yet have a duty under section 19 of the Education Act 1996 to ensure DS receives a suitable full-time education. The LA’s duty only applies to compulsory school aged pupils. So, if DS turned 5 this term, he isn’t yet CSA and, although the LA has the power to make such provision, they do not have a duty to. Although they are still responsible for anything detailed, specified and quantified in F of the EHCP as per section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

As previously explained, with an EHCP, it isn’t as simple as (non-wholly independent) schools telling you they are full/oversubscribed/there are no spaces.

@Ricecakesaremyjam im Surrey too! Tbh ive actually found them ok, i know they are a nightmare for many tho

If you report your post to mumsnet you could ask them to send me your email and we can speak separately?

Or if you message on the surrey sen parents FB page i can dm you from there?

Ive considered indie ss, indie MS, MS with unit, MS with suport, state SS so ive beem to almost every school around 🤣