Please or to access all these features

SEN

Here you'll find advice from parents and teachers on special needs education.

Referral to child development team - what to expect?

5 replies

invisiblecats · 15/09/2017 12:55

DS has been referred to the Children’s Community & Complex Needs Team after I spoke to the GP a while back.

What should I expect? What will they want to know about?

DS is 8yo. He's bright and for the most part, achieving at school so he tends to go under the radar I think.

But he struggles with forming relationships, he still wets himself a lot, and every night. He finds it hard to concentrate. He finds it really hard to witch off and get to sleep. His handwriting is very behind and he hates writing (I think it's the concentration).

He's very sensitive about stuff like itchy labels and socks. He's got tinnitus. He prefers to spend ages talking about the rules of a game rather than getting on with it and playing the game and the other kids just want to play!

He's very comfortable talking to adults and sounds very sure of himself. But he's immature in keeping in control of his emotions, If he's upset he'll very easily cry loudly, like a small child would.

He finds stuff like tying laces difficult. He's glass half empty and remembers the bad stuff.

He's oppositional, he argues ALL THE TIME about basic stuff like putting his shoes on or brushing his teeth and always has done.

Last time he was at the hospital for an ear appontment the nurse asked if he had special needs as he refused to comply with the test, by pretending he couldn't hear the sounds at all.

Sometime it seems he's not clear on what's fantasty and what's real.

He's a lovely, bright boy and I don't know if he's simply got a bit of a difficult personality and he'll work it out as he gets older, or if we should be worried about ASD / ADHD. Maybe he's just ridiculously tired all the time!

I'm worried about not getting my point across and what if he does need support but I don't explain it well enough.

Also - what should I say to him? The woman on the phone said to just say we're goign to visit a nice lady. But he's a bright 8 year old. That might have washed when he was 4 but not now! I need to explain it to him in a way that's honsest but doesn't tell him what they're looking for - I suspect he'll play up to it- or try to hide it - if I do.

OP posts:
invisiblecats · 15/09/2017 13:23

Hopeful bump! :)

OP posts:
invisiblecats · 15/09/2017 14:50

Anyone?

OP posts:
Ginmummy1 · 22/09/2017 13:41

This is quite a quiet forum. Maybe ask MNHQ to move it to SN Children, within the Special Needs section.

invisiblecats · 22/09/2017 17:08

Yes, very quiet!

Thanks for the reply, :) I'll check out SN Children.

We had the appointment, it went well.

OP posts:
Tainbri · 25/09/2017 11:31

Hiya, they will want to know everything you have written here Smile take a list with you of things you'd like to discuss. Often there is more than one person present, ie, the Peadiactric consultant plus an OT, physio, maybe SALT, they will agree a plan of reviews and referrals with you, discuss school, support or medical interventions. It can be intense in the fact that they try and cover a lot in a short time, which is why I say make a note of things you're worried about, want to discuss etc so you cover everything.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page