Why would the school not want to do ECHP

[treeglass]

Hi there my ds has started his journey to see the autism team to maybe eventually get a diagnosis. Paediatrician said he wants us to get a ECHP. I spoke to the school and the SENCO said they don't believe he needs it and they don't want to apply if they don't think they'll get it. She said they have children with autism at the school without ECHP and they don't need them. I'm really confused. Why would they not want to do it? I've been googling a lot and it seems schools don't like doing them? Am I being fobbed off or should I trust the Senco?

I mean EHCP got my letters the wrong way around

It then legally requires them to provide what is outlined in the EHCP, rather than what they deem appropriate for your DC given their financial/staffing situation. Depending where you live EHCPs don't necessarily come with additional funding, although in some cases they do. To get the top funding the school would have to already be spending the max amount of their general school SEN pot on your DC, which they may not deem necessary/the best use of it. Furthermore the cost of paying for the OT, SALT and EP assessments and reports required for and EHCP will come from the school's SEN pot, when this could instead be used on supporting kids.

The school may also feel they are adequately supporting your DC's needs. Depending on what they are the adjustments required could be relatively cheap.

Having said all that if you feel your child does require an EHCP you, as a parent, can request an assessment for one without involving the school or having them onside. The bar is very low for this legally, but often much higher in practice is you might need to appeal.

It also irritates schools that health professionals can also request statutory assessment and it is rather passing the buck to ask the school to do it. I have no problem requesting a needs assessment when students need it - and have requested many in recent years with extremely positive outcomes - but I also believe in being honest when students don’t need an EHCP.

Depending where you live EHCPs don't necessarily come with additional funding

By law, EHCPs always come with additional funding if that is what is required. Some local authorities like to make out that that is not the case, but it is utter nonsense. Provided section F of the EHCP properly specifies the provision the child needs, the council has to ensure that they receive it, otherwise they can be taken to court using legal aid in the child's name.

I would really be quite worried about a SENCO who seriously comes out with a statement that they have other children with autism without EHCPs therefore your child shouldn't have one. It's just basic that autism is a spectrum, and may manifest in one child totally differently from the way it does in another.

The legal criteria for the first stage in the process, asking for assessment, are simply that your child has or may have SEN, and that he may need help through an EHC Plan. So far as the second part of that test goes, you need to look at things like evidence of progress (including non-academic progress, e.g. communication, anxiety, sensory problems etc) and, in particular, whether the child's needs can be met within the resources normally available in mainstream schools.

You can ask for an EHC needs assessment yourself - www.ipsea.org.uk/asking-for-an-ehc-needs-assessment. If the school doesn't support you, the council will probably refuse, but it is quite easy to appeal and appeals have a success rate in the region of 90%.

Many LAs have unlawful blanket policies that they expect schools to endorse too. This could be one of them and the SENCO is just spinning the line the LA is feeding them.

If you feel your child needs an EHCP apply yourself. Lots of advice on the IPSEA site. PP gave the link above.

I think it is difficult when your child is on SEN support only. Ds would not get an ehcp and his grades are ok but he is struggling in lots of other ways. Much of it related to his autism and the mental health difficulties it has caused. There is no legal requirement like you have with an ehcp for him to get support, you are really at the mercy of what school is willing to offer.

I guess like others have said you can apply yourself. Good luck with the process.

I think as it has been mentioned by the paed, that it would be useful to try. If school aren't willing to apply then you can do it yourself.
You don't want to get to year 6 or year 11 and think 'I wish we had gotten help sooner'
Schools are required to fund the first £6k of an EHCP and it's a lot of paper work. So if the school feel they are meeting the child's needs then they won't want to apply for one. I don't see the harm in trying. It could be beneficial all round

Ime la put the responsibility of ehcp so to the school when it should be them doing it.

Also as said above they have to provide all in it and not the minimum needed to meet needs.

My ds has an ehcp. It's not all 1:1 and some I'd just having access to keyworker if needed. But he wouldn't get his 1:1 in subjects who scribes and explains things for him without it because that just doesn't exist in secondary school.

If, from experience, they know that your child doesn't hit the threshold for an EHCP, then they won't want to go to the expense and effort of applying one, or look daft when the LEA raise an eyebrow about it.

In our area we have to demonstrate that a child's needs absolutely cannot be met by the school. You can't just say that, you have to demonstrate that you have tried every possible strategy, involved every possible outside agency and exhausted everything, and that the child is still unable to access education.

Well my son was unable to attend school due to anxiety and was diagnosed Bh Camhs with school anxiety and referred for CBT.

I still had to go to tribunal for refusal to assess as school said it could meet need.
The la brought 2 school staff as witnesses and replaced the OT and EP with them.

Judge was and told la that. Also pulled school up on saying Camhs didn't ask their opinion on DS and they didn't agree with them!

There does come a point where it's obvious everything you're trying that takes 6 months of waiting to access isn't working and immediate full multi agency assessment is needed and a multi agency approach is needed.

Most la will try and follow local policy as opposed to the law! And most will try and convince parents it's the best thing for their child.

My la actually used a document called an IPA and told parents it was better for the child as didn't have a stigma attached to it yeah no stigma. Or ring fenced funding or legal requirement to follow it.
My ds has one when he tried to hang himself.
Amazing document that was