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Original poster

I've just found an IEP in my DD's bookbag

43 replies

icooksocks · 20/09/2011 21:12

Just opened my year 2 DD's bookbag to find an official looking letter in there, I open the letter and out falls an IEP and a letter saying if my child is on the special needs register then they may be assessed by someone from learning and behaviour support service.
Background-We moved to the area in June, and she started at this school 3 weeks before summer hols. She struggled to settle to start with but appears to be happy now. She is not on the special needs register, she has no known problems, and was always very much an average pupil at her last school.
So what the chuffing hell is going on, how does she go from an average child to one who requires an IEP in the space of 3 months (6 weeks of those not spent at school).
Can anyone tell me whether I should be worried-she is my eldest so have no knowledge of what to do now.

OP posts:

hockeyforjockeys · 20/09/2011 21:48

It usually takes a while to get a new child onto the register (certainly in my school!), unless they were on the register at their previous school, have a proactive parent and their IEP comes with them. If their concerns are serious enough to want external assessment then they should of called you in to discuss it already. One thought is, have the accidentally sent it to the wrong parent? You need to phone/visit the school asap and ask for an appointment with the class teacher and SENCO (special needs coordinator) to discuss it. Until you have the facts it is hard to know what is going on.

IndigoBell · 21/09/2011 10:39

Well, unless it's a mistake, they appear to be very concerned about her behaviour in school.

I think if she has an IEP, then she has already been put on the SEN register. (You can be on the SEN register for behaviour problems, even if you have no academic problems)

I think you need to urgently make a meeting with school to find out their concerns.

An IEP normally has targets on it. What are the targets your DD has been given? Do you agree with them?

limetrees · 21/09/2011 10:42

For a start, don't worry. Just because someone has issued a piece of paper, it doesn't mean your DD has changed into a different person from the one you knew. She's still the same person.

IEPs can be issued to young children for all sorts of reasons. Some will have an IEP for a short time and then not have them anymore. Some will have more serious needs and have them for longer. My DS has had an IEP in the past and doesn't anymore. He's in Y1 now.

What are the targets on the IEP?

reallytired · 21/09/2011 10:43

That is an awful experience. My son was on an IEP for handwriting and having severe glue ear and the teacher discussed target with me.

It is shocking that they have not told you that her behaviour is a problem. It seems very extreme to have someone external to assess her when they have not tried any strageries with her first. Surely discussing poor behaviour with a parent would be the first course of action.

LIZS · 21/09/2011 10:44

Agree if she has an iep then she is already on the SEN register, but this is not necessarily for the long term or due to a specific SEN . What areas does she struggle with ? Could it be she needs help to get her academically more in line with her peers ? Normally you should have a draft IEP then discussion with SENCO and teacher to finalise it so definitely ask for mroe information.

nickschick · 21/09/2011 10:46

Is it addressed to you?
Is it possible they are enquiring with you as to whether or not she had an iep with her other school?

Go in and ask to speak to the SENCO and discuss it there - if you disagree be vocal but not rude.

Oggy · 21/09/2011 10:53

You def need to speak to school to get a proper understanding, as I'm sure you already realise.

Only thing that stands out for me is that as this is a new school her peers will be completely different, therefore average at last school/class doesn't necessarilly translate to average in this school/class.

I'm not saying this is the case, but I suppose it is possible that while she was about average amongst her peers at her last school, the class she has now joined may be a lot further ahead and that this now puts her at a disadvantage in her new class an dthey just want to get her up to average for her peers? Wouldn't mean her abilities have changed at all, just that they have moved along faster in her new school and she needs to catch up a bit maybe?

Sorry, I don't really know, that was just what sprung out as a thought.

JajasWolef · 21/09/2011 10:59

The school should have spoken with you and gone through the IEP to explain everything thoroughly. Saying that, at least they are taking action to help your DD so talk to them and find out what the problems and targets are. She may only be on it for a short time.

ChazsBrilliantAttitude · 21/09/2011 11:02

IEP's are not a bad thing. My DS1 had one because he is mildly dyslexic and had poor fine motor control (i.e. struggled with reading and handwriting). He has had focussed help with his reading and handwriting which over 2 years means he has caught up with his peers and has gone from being in the bottom third of the class to the top third.

I would be worried about the lack of communication as I have always gone into the school to discuss the IEP before a new one is started.

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:05

As a former SenCo, I can say it is shocking practice to just send home an IEP without any prior consultation with the parents. IME, IEPs are drawn up in consultation with the parents and the first contact is usually a 'quiet word' or note asking mum and/or dad to come in for a chat. Parents usually sign the agreed IEP too before anyone retains a copy. This is good practice not just so you don't scare the hell out of a parent who has no incline their child has problems but also so school and parents are both very clear on what the child's goals are and can work together to achieve them.

You must go in and seek clarification and ask why you were not consulted in the process.

IndigoBell · 21/09/2011 11:05

Oggy and Lizs - IEPS do not have to be for academic reasons. She can be top of the class in every subject and be on the SEN register (hence needing an IEP) for behavioural issues. ( Or other issues as well)

30% of the school will be on the SEN register, for a huge variety of reasons. Most of them not academic.

Being on the SEN register just means the school is going to give her extra help with something.

ragged · 21/09/2011 11:09

Just ask "What the fuck is this IEP thing?" to the school receptionist and pursue it from there.
DS has twice had an IEP, I'm kind of inured to it now.

IEP is usually a good thing, means that they are recognising needs and they must think of actions that can be taken to help improve things, not typecasting her as a problem-forever child so let's just forget about her. They are motivated to get her off IEP because it means less paperwork. IME teachers don't typecast children as forever-naughty, it's only parents who do that!

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:10

But the issue here is not why she is on the SEN register nor whether it is appropriate in her case.

Quite simply, it is very bad practice to produce an IEP for a child and send home a copy without having previously discussed with the parent the difficulties in question.

IndigoBell · 21/09/2011 11:12

It's also illegal to put a child on the SEN register without telling the parents :)

While only bad practice to not discuss an IEP.....

pozzled · 21/09/2011 11:23

You definitely need to speak to the class teacher in the first instance, and possibly the SENCO as well. You should complain about the way it was done, and obviously clarify why they felt it was necessary.

In the meantime, though, it should be clear from the IEP what their concerns are- it should clearly state whether the IEP is for learning issues, behaviour or something else. Concerns should be summarised and the targets should reflect them..

What kinds of targets are set? Are they things that you think she is capable of?

ragged · 21/09/2011 11:23

All this talk of "bad practice" is Policy Boffin Speak.
Which is fine, I guess (?) the world needs Policy Boffins.
But probably most parents don't give a fig about "best practice", they just want to know what This Bit of Paper means about their individual child.
Hope you get this clarified soon, OP.

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:26

Well quite, Indigo, but I assume school see the sending home of the IEP as official notification.

Aside from anything else, it really isn't in either the school or the child's best interest to go about it this way. Not to mention the shock for the OP on opening the letter.

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:31

What are you talking about Ragged? I don't mean bad practice in some obscure, theoretical way. I mean it is an inappropriate way of doing things. Putting a child on the SN register without first consulting the parents even to mention that school have concerns is unacceptable.

There's nothing wooly or removed about what I said. The way they have gone about things is wrong and has both practical and emotional implications for the child's parents. She needs to go in and sort it out and ask why she wasn't even consulted in the process.

HattiFattner · 21/09/2011 11:31

could it also be that you have been told, very gently, that there are issues, but maybe it didn't register that they were serious, especially as she has not been in school or long - parents do have a habit of wearing rose tinted spectacles.

Had one in our school, in complete denial that her child was falling behind in reading, even after child was put in reading recovery. Got to Junior school, and mother threw a huge hissy fit about child needing extra reading support and that she had "not been told" and of course it was the infant schools fault....

ragged · 21/09/2011 11:34

"bad practice" = jargon. But if I have to explain that then I'm not sure you'll understand.
I agree the school should have done things differently, but OP is where she is and may not feel like waging a campaign. Mostly likely just wants a simple explanation of where things are at now for her child rather than worrying about violations of "best practice".

IndigoBell · 21/09/2011 11:38

ragged - you may not care if your school are doing things as well as other schools, but most people do.

There's a vast diff between giving a parent a piece of paper in their book bag, and calling them in to a meeting to discuss issues.

And that is why it's called 'best practice'. It means the way that is currently recognised as the best way to do things.

And talking with a parent when school has concerns is more effective than just giving them a piece of paper.

It's not just about what does this paper mean. It's also about what school are going to do, and what the parent could or should be doing - which needs a meeting to discuss.

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:43

I completely disagree with you that 'most parents' don't care about how the school does things. IME, most parents whose child needs an IEP care very much that school follow the correct procedures to ensure the best outcome for the child and that includes keeping them, as parents, fully informed of what interventions and outsie agencies are being deployed.

'Bad practice' is not jargon. It's a perfectly easy to understand statement. TBH, the lack of 'good practice' with regards this would make me worry what else they are sloppy about and whether they would actually be teaching to the targets stated on the IEP.

lovingthecoast · 21/09/2011 11:44

x posts, Indigo.

Kittenunderbed · 21/09/2011 11:50

I'm a SENCo and recently went through this!

The PREVIOUS school had put the child on the SEN register and not told the parents, I then simply sent home a copy of the old IEP i'd received for the parents so I knew they had a copy before I called them in for a review meeting (presuming they had seen it).

All hell broke loose!

startail · 21/09/2011 12:20

OP send a note into school asking what's going on and request a meeting with the schools Senco. And don't worry schools use the SN register and IEPs to ensure they address all kinds of individual learning and social needs, it is often not for anything major.
Personally I'd be delighted to see an IEP for my dyslexic daughter, I hope one exists, but I've never seen it.
I will have to email her senior school, but we have a new Senco (the third in just over 2 years) i don't think a bright, well behaved, if socially totally inept Y9 will be at the top of her list. However, assessments for extra exam time etc. need to be sorted and there is little possibility anything will happen if they are not reminded.

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