To ask you to sum up your council’s SEN provision in a sentence?

[Starwomanwaiting]

Hello all,
Some very brief background: I have an autistic child, referred at 18 months, saw consultant before age 2, diagnosed age 3, extra funding at nursery for at least a year now. Nursery is applying for EHCP which will take 12 weeks. Have seen educational psychologist and looking to defer reception for a year.

My question: it seems like we have been very lucky with our experience so far (except for speech therapy provision, which has had to be private). However we can’t stay in the city forever and need to buy a house/want a garden. So we need to find somewhere that isn’t going to be total shite for SEND.

If you are outside London and have had a good experience please tell me! I know each case is unique but it would help me do more research. Equally if your experience has been awful and you’d like to warn me off please do so.

I want to do right by my kid, but in a SEND crisis it’s hard to know where to start.

Thanks x

Kent - avoid at all cost

This is absolutely true. Our borough just had a SEN inspection, and my team in particular got commended for 'going above and beyond to consistently work flexibly in children's best interests'. But what the inspectors didn't see was all the extra unpaid hours we work at the expense of our own families. I probably cry to my husband at least once every week at how exhausted I am working in a system which doesn't really 'work', we keep going as we know the families and children need it. But people are burning out - I cut my hours to 23 per week from full time, I still work full time hours but this is more manageable than working full time and the extra time on top. In the parent feedback as part of the inspection most reported to be happy with the services their child was receiving. But its unsustainable long term to be working like this. There is no more money. So I don't know the solution

Birmingham: stretched to breaking point! Actually probably already stretched way beyond that!

This is absolutely true. Our borough just had a SEN inspection, and my team in particular got commended for 'going above and beyond to consistently work flexibly in children's best interests'. But what the inspectors didn't see was all the extra unpaid hours we work at the expense of our own families

Absolutely this - Whilst dealing with X child Y child gets missed - most days we’re leaping from in crisis to another - no funding, going above and beyond daily is exhausting!

Covered by Oxfordshire / Buckinghamshire. Oxon is dire and constantly in the news. Bucks is better but not brilliant

Of course we will put him in a sen school for secondary (spoiler he had NO school at secondary)

Emergency review? What Emergency review i dont think ive seen that.....

You have sen school less than a mile away? Here let me send you to one 30 miles away down a motorway instead! What do you mean that's not suitable?

The one that I can sum up in "one" sentence is..

Thank you for your email im currently on annual leave (AGAIN)

Strategic incompetence and underhand tactics designed to delay, deter and obfuscate.

where are you?

As much use as a chocolate teapot.

I’m so sorry. Which council?

Jesus! Where is this please?

Kirklees, utterly hopeless! This is coming from a mainstream teacher and parent of a child with SEND.

So sad and sorry that so many of you are having such a dire experience. Please say where you are if you are comfortable to spare others the same

The problem with asking this question is that people will give you answers based on their experience over the last ten or so years. It’s only in the last couple of years that things seem to have changed significantly for the worse, and it’s only now that funding is truly hitting the bottom of the pit. It might be worth bearing that in mind if you have choices to make.

Delay, delay, so they don't have to pay... Cornwall. Daughter been out of education for over a year.

I've had a pretty easy time with the provision for DS. Was diagnosed as autistic at 4, got EHCP with no issues. Was seen by CAHMS within two weeks. Now 18, he is at college and all still good. DS gets transport provided which had been fairly smooth. EHCP reviews have sometimes been late, but other than that, all fine. I've been lucky compared to some. Edited to add, we are South East

This is very true. Things have got much more stretched in past 12-18 months I think. I have been in same job in sane place for 12 years and the last year had been without doubt the toughest

Leicestershire - awful.

derby council led by someone who keeps saying he doesn’t believe all the SEN diagnosis are necessary or true. Awful.

Essex county council- probably desperately underfunded for the needs of such a big population. Only 4 SEND schools that I know of (I’m pretty sure that’s probably it) - one of which deals with children who don’t have severe learning difficulties (so largely ASD/ADHD). My DC got an EHCP very easily but she’s severely disabled physically and nonverbal etc.
I think for ASD children I’d avoid Essex - though it’s a popular relocation from London spot. I work in a private school and see a lot of ASD children in that school- I expect it’s because there are so few facilities elsewhere.

Realistically though, the overwhelming majority of parents aren't able to just 'up and leave' their home, family, jobs, other dcs' schools and activities, and the things that do work, to then just plant themselves in another LA because someone on the internet says 'my experience isn't too bad'.

Life is far more complex than that.

Realistically though, if he is 18, then that is a long time ago.
The withdrawal of transport for 16+ (and rising 5s) has been a more recent thing in my LA.
When he was 4, Statements were still a thing.
Austerity hadn't really filtered through.
The Conservatives had only come into power in 2010.
We still had SureStart Centres.

Things are very different now.
I was working in SEND provision for U5s and we used to be able to support Nurseries with Sp&L Issues, and behaviour issues, and had time to guide them on policies and all sorts of general issues to do with SEND.
Now, barely 1/10th of those who would have got a Statement 15 years ago will get an EHCP now.
15 years ago, most dc who needed it were able to get a Special school place if one were really needed, and the family wanted it, but now there are 10+ dc with incredible significant, complex needs, fighting for every place.

People do do this though. We have a huge caseload, and I have lost count of the number of people who have said 'my sister/friend/mums friend/colleague said this borough has excellent provision so that's why we moved here'. People re locate all the time for lots of different reasons.

Change your thread title OP so that people know to include the LA.

Bristol have been pretty good. I’ve heard Essex are terrible.

West Sussex are truly dreadful, mainstream schools cannot support or seemingly do anything and the LA blame the schools. Shocking