Are your children with EHCPs in School?

[EasterBuns]

My dd has a care plan but when School first closed we were told if children could be kept home they should be.
Apparently this was the guidance then but the government issued new guidance to schools on 11th May to say children who have a care plan or are vulnerable should now be encouraged to attend.
Our school did not change their advice and I know the children in school are only watching films so have no desire to send dd at the moment.
Should we be pushing school to provide her with an education?

No. The guidance changed from safer at home to as safe in school as at home. School has offered additional places from June to key workers who had go back work (maybe all teacher families??) which means only 10% kids been offered place. Physical space and staffing are preventing more children going back. You should have had risk assessment by school or social worker and this should have been revisited when guidance changed. I’m more concerned there is no plan to reopen to all pupils in Sept. if 2m rule is still in place then only 10% can be on site at a time

If your child is not in a returning year group, then she would be placed in a keyworker group and not being taught as such.

At most schools, those groups are being offered childcare and doing the work being set for the children at home but under supervision.

You can request a place and the school will conduct a risk assessment. If your child will be as safe at school as they would be at home, they may well be offered a place.

I think we need guidance about the guidance :)

"Should we be pushing school to provide her with an education?"

How?

Why?

care plan?

Is there something that they should be providing her with in the care plan? They should still try to do so imo.

My don attends a special school and twice we have been asked if we would like him back at school and both times we've said yes! But they then say no he must stay at home where he's safe ! So why bloody ask us then 😡

Tinsel that is annoying. I can only assume that the class teacher or SENCO - whoever rings you - makes the offer but is overruled once the risk assessment has been conducted. In your situation, I'd contact the Head by email to ensure that you had the refusal, and reasons, in writing.

"s there something that they should be providing her with in the care plan? They should still try to do so imo."

The guidance has temporarily modified the statutory obligations of an ehcp. I think the wording is 'best endeavours' but this is obviously and unfortunately subject to interpretation.

OP, in your shoes I would be asking if your child can return to school. If you are certain that you don't want to do that, as you suggest, then the school need only signpost homelearning materials.

So the care plan has funding attached which pays the salary of her one to one TA. This TA is sat at home on full pay but has not made contact. I do think she could at least be trying to assist/encourage dd.

You can suggest it op, but they are not obligated to do that. Why not call the school to talk all of this through with them?

@EasterBuns

So the care plan has funding attached which pays the salary of her one to one TA. This TA is sat at home on full pay but has not made contact. I do think she could at least be trying to assist/encourage dd.

Hello, they need to use reasonable endeavours, so take a look at:

www.sossen.org.uk/admin/resources/coronavirus_03052020.pdf

"So the care plan has funding attached which pays the salary of her one to one TA. This TA is sat at home on full pay but has not made contact. I do think she could at least be trying to assist/encourage dd."

Why don't you ring and discuss this? Some of our TAs were unable to do this as they didn't have wifi or access to a computer at home, so they were making resources for us instead, and doing lots of reading around various subjects so that they could offer training on their return to school.

And now of course they are all back at school supporting bubbles.

You really do need to speak to your school, just ring them today.

DD has an EHCP and is in y7. She failed the risk assessment in the beginning but we didn't want her in anyway. She's making much more progress at home as I'm able to give her 1:1 support.
She also has a TA funded for 15hrs a week and we get one 10 min phone call a week 🙄. The work is either way too easy or way too hard for her so we're pretty much doing our own thing. She doesn't want to come back to school at all.