Statementing and choosing a primary school - help please!

[Sillybillybob]

Hello, I'm a long time poster but have name changed for this simply as it's going to be around for a long time and ideally I would like not to be searchable by friends and family in the future...

Anyway, DS is due to start school next September. He is NT although a little behind most of his friends due to having been very poorly for a while.

He is physically disabled. He is unable to walk and is also incontinent and therefore still wears nappies.

I've spoken to his healthcare team about this and they have said I need to ask his nursery to prepare a statement for him. I really don't know anything about this at all - what it means or what it involves.

Some people have mentioned that in certain circumstances a statement could help DS get in to his first choice school regardless of distance etc.

My understanding is that that happens where there is only 1 school that can cater for his needs. I am struggling to see where that would ever be the case except where its a school with specific provision for, say, SEN or blindness or deafness. Or would it also extend to, say, he needs to go to our local school because it's local and easier for appointments etc, or that there's another school nearby which already has 1 child in nappies and has another 1 starting next year so is already set up to cater for him...

Can anyone offer any advice or explanation? I've never done this before!!! Thank you.

I will come back and comment, but my takeaway has just arrived. Back in a bit!

Ooh yum! I'm not jealous.

Oh no.

Not one tiny bit...

Galena will have good advice, she's a regular on the SN board, but you should post on SN children as well. Loads of us have DC with statements!

Right, I'm back (and it was mighty tasty!)

DD has a physical disability. She struggled to settle in playgroup due to feeling vulnerable among able-bodied peers, so we worked on getting her a statement before she transferred to school.

We started the process ourselves in September 2012, in discussion with playgroup - alternatively it is possible for them to make the request. We used a letter template from IPSEA requesting Statutory Assessment and sent it off, outlining DD's difficulties and why we felt that the playgroup were unable to support her with present staffing levels. We also contacted: paediatrician, physiotherapist and occupational therapist and asked them for reports (I included a copy of our letter, so they could see what difficulties we had put down and could 'back us up' - only worth doing with 'helpful' professionals).

The LA then sent out an educational psychologist to observe her in playgroup and we received a copy of that report. Also the Advisory Teacher for Physical Disability came out to observe her, and whilst we didn't receive her report, she said she would be recommending a statement for her. They also sent a letter to playgroup asking for a report (which we wrote together )

Then 'the panel' - which pretty much means the key person you are given at the LA when you start the process - decided that yes, they would do the SA. We were then asked to submit a further report and in that I cross referenced the reports from the professionals - showing the recommendations made and who made them. We received a draft statement in December last year - along with a 'choice of school' form. I sent it back along with some changes to be made and they changed it and returned it. It was then fine so we accepted it. Her 1-1 TA (full time) started in Feb 2013.

So... choice of school. It means exactly that. You can choose any school you want for your DS. As long as his attendance does not prejudice the learning of other children, and as long as it is appropriate for him (i.e. not a special school if he doesn't need it) then he is guaranteed a place.

I went round to different schools and talked to them about DD in May 2012. We felt that one particular school would suit her best, and it was likely that if we applied in the normal way we would get in. However, because it was named on her statement, she was guaranteed a place.

Because the statement was in place before the end of the academic year, the teachers and SENCo from the school were able to come into playgroup and they arranged an enhanced transition for her. She was also able to meet her school 1-1 beforehand as she was already working at the school and was released 1 morning a week to come to playgroup. It was really reassuring!

Anyway, that's a hugely long missive (and I may well have cross posted with others) but hopefully explains a little of the process. Feel free to PM me if you want any more info or copies of the letter and report we sent as part of the process.

Thanks SarahJane I forgot to mention the SN board :)

Thank you so much for that great explanation. That's really helpful.

We're in a funny kind of limbo at the moment because he is due to finish treatment shortly . If everything goes to plan hopefully he will be walking normally in a couple of months although he will still be very tired for a while yet. It's impossible to say when or if his digestive system will ever recover.

If things don't go to plan well, it doesn't bear thinking about. God only knows what state he may be in come September, if at all.

It sounds like, even if I wrote off tomorrow this process would still be ongoing come 15th January so I wonder whether if a school was recommended then we could sneak in due to a change of circumstances (ie the statement being in place) or whether then the statement would only be relevant to the school he's allocated by the LA on distance.

But, you can either ask the preschool to apply for statutory assessment for a statement of SEN, or preferably you can apply yourself, there are model letters on the IPSEA website. If you do it yourself you are more in control and can guarantee that it's actually been done. The preschool will usually support you in this.

It takes up to 6 months from applying to get a Statement in place, if there are no problems. LAs often seem to reject requests initially as a matter of course to save money and weed out those not determined so don't be downhearted if they do, just appeal while getting advice from MNSN.

If you do manage to get a statement, you can choose the school you feel is best for your DC regardless of admissions criteria. Statemented DC are top of the admissions criteria, even above LAC. The school does have to agree that they can meet your DC's needs, but if one MS school can, most won't have much of an argument that they can't unless physical disabilities and old buildings clash.

HTH

Ooo, crossed with Galena and with you! Now to read what we both said.

Apply through normal channels and if the statement is granted and the school is named he will be admitted as an 'excepted pupil' which means infant class size doesn't apply to him - he will be admitted as number 31.