Any SENCO/EYFS/ parent of children with glasses able to offer advice?

[Perkyduck131]

DD is 3.5 and has been wearing glasses for over a year, patching for 10 months. After being told she was improving we were shocked to discover that her eyesight had got worse at the last apt (increased prescription from +6 to +7- she had started on +4)
Had induction session with pre school and mentioned it to classroom teacher who alerted SENCO.
Saw SENCO yesterday at an induction session- she asked if DD was visually impaired, I said she was as the language used in appointments with specialist/ optician/ nursery discussed impaired vision. She then mention getting VI team which made me think it was something separate.
I’ve now looked online and to have a VI seems more complex - I feel I have (unintentionally!) misled the school and i’ll be labelled as an over exaggerator/time waster.

Anyone got any advice? For what it’s worth, the specialist has said DD is a complex case and that we are ‘on a long journey together’. In her tests at hospital it is clear that with her strong eye covered she finds it really difficult to differentiate between objects (e.g. an outline of a boot or a duck). I raised it to just flag potential classroom accommodations and think we may have crossed wires over terminology. Am kicking myself for not raising it at the time but was struggling to take in what she was saying.

Do I email? Leave it? Is this something that would be considered worth noting at primary level?

Thanks

As a parent who has had a child with complex SEN I would support the school bringing them in. If your daughter doesn't meet the threshold for intervention then they will withdraw, but they may be able to support the school with ideas and interventions which will help her access the curriculum and enrich the classroom environment for her.

Additionally, their support being in place may help support funding bids for you daughter which can pay for additional resources or support.

It's worth the assessment being done, her eyes are settled either so they need to be able to adapt

Thanks so much for your responses. @charmatt hope your child is getting the support they need, it seems to be such a mixed bag. Agree the school have been proactive and so impressed with their response. My main concern is that they may feel I’ve misled them over my sloppy use of the term ‘visual impairment’ so wasn’t sure whether it would be fair to clarify- it’s only atm it’s a bit of a ‘wait and see’ scenario as the specialist has said she’s unsure how things will progress as she gets older.

Just provide the SENCO with the info you have and explain what you have said here. You are a parent not a specialist, you are allowed to get the odd term muddled. You won't be the first parent to have been confused by a question.

As for getting the VI team in, accept any help offered, even if they decided DD doesn't meet their criteria they may well be able to give the school some advice.

Thank you - my son is now 18 and I'm very proud of him

Don't worry at all about having them come in - it's always best to engage professionals early if you can. If they can help then it sets the foundation for help through education and gives you a benchmark of expectation from the LA and schools.

Good luck

Patching doesn’t normally affect prescription for refractive error? However, if your child’s eyesight is complex then it might be worth seeing VI. If they are anything like here, they check for things opticians don’t normally check for like the affect of crowding and contrast on vision, ability to pick out items from background detail, visual processing, etc. They will see her, assess her, and leave if not needed.

YY, as a parent of a child who is severely visually impaired enough to be registered blind, welcome the visual impairment service with open arms.
(I should say that dc has very usable vision, but is restricted as to size and distance when reading.)
They will assess your DD as to what her needs are and advise you and the school appropriately.
They may suggest aids to help her, such as a writing slope and not expecting her to write in cursive later on, as well as training the school staff to help them understand what her needs are.
You aren't exaggerating. Your child has a need for support and understanding due to her vision, and hopefully she will get what she needs.
Sorry to get on my box here, but I know many parts of the country are not well served by sensory impairment teams!

I'm an optometrist.

It's very unlikely that your daughter would be classified as visually impaired, unless she also had poor vision in her good eye and/or had a restriction in her visual field or another co-exisiting visual condition.

Children with amblyopia usually do well at school, although there may be some reduction in her depth perception and you need to make sure the teacher is aware that she needs to wear her glasses at all times.

It's not abnormal for a big jump in prescription at age 3 as under this age we tend to undercurrent (so give less of a prescription than the child actually has) in order to help the eyes to develop normally. The "improvement" they spoke about will probably be a improvement in the amount of letters/symbols on the chart that she can see, rather than the actual prescription.

Thank you so much for all the helpful responses, I really appreciate them as was in a real mess about it.
Just as an update: the SENCO has already contacted DD’s nursery to discuss current provision and has a realistic picture of the support she currently receives. Meeting the specialist again in August so as advised will pass over all the info.
So pleased that the school seem to be proactive as know this is not always the case! Thanks again for all the responses.