My son is in Year Two at a mainstream primary school in Islington. He was diagnosed with ASD in 2011 and has had full time one-to-one support since starting school in 2012 (Band 6 on the old statementing system). We're currently transitioning to the new ECHP system, and I've noticed that the form no longer states the number of hours' provision to which he's entitled.
I've questioned the local authority rep, who has confirmed that council now doesn't include the number of hours' support on the Plans, as the majority of the SEN budget has now been devolved to schools. In other words, the schools themselves decide how many hours should be provided based on the child’s need.
It's unclear to me (and to our SENCo) how the school secures the amount of funding necessary for each child. My concern is that our legal rights are being removed and, if the LA were to suddenly impose cuts, we'd have no legal leg to stand on.
I'd be grateful to hear from anyone else who has similar concerns, or anyone who has information about the new system.
Many thanks in advance