Requesting a PA/Carer

[longwaittobeseen]

Hi all
In 2020 we requested a carer assessment from our LA social care as we wanted respite care for ourselves as our relationship was struggling. We have two children , an ASD daughter with significant needs and a teenage NT son. We had carers come in to our home several times to interview us. They declared that child was "child in need" but they couldn't give us respite because they passed it on to school to arrange an "Early Help Plan". They washed heir hand off at that point. The school got in contact and said they were going to sort this out but has not idea what an Early Help Plan is. Several months passed in which school SENCO kept saying that she was trying to arrange some EarlyHelp Plan training but nothing happened. In 2021, when our relationship started to get effected once again, I got in touch with local authority and got the training arranged for school (this shows how useless school were at this). Well nothing happened even then and due to reasons that I cannot detail here we had to pull our child at age 6 from school and she is now home schooled EHE.

Now things are going bad again. I have severe depression with only medication that work make me drowsy. Husbands work suffers because he spends too much time sorting stuff at home. He now is going to loose his contract and due to financial crisis may not even find something local so will be staying away from home. I don't think I will be able to deal with two kids on my own with these medications as well.

I am going to try and chase social care again to request help. The teenage son is no bother he is quite self sufficient. My little girl needs more attention, she needs to be taken out to places. She has an EHCP in place and is attending a local tution place 15 hours a week paid by LA. I am afraid if I ask for help they will deem me as a bad parent and try to take away my kids (I know this sounds far fetched, but that is just my fear). If I don;t make a big deal they may not offer any help. If I make too big a deal I loose my kids 😬
So confused. This time around I know I need a carer to take her out to places and help with daily routine, but could really do with some advice from someone who has that help on how you achieved it.

Thanks

As well as a carer’s assessment for you has DD has an assessment by the disabled children’s team?

They declared that child was "child in need" but they couldn't give us respite because they passed it on to school to arrange an "Early Help Plan".

Unfortunately they fobbed you off with this. You will only receive social care provision if you fight for it. I don’t believe the school didn’t know a early help plan was either.

You don’t have to go in to details but you didn’t have to EHE. If DD couldn’t attend school the LA had a duty to provide alternative provision. By EHE you relieved the LA of their duties. It is often easier to get support when on a school’s roll even if not attending.

You need to ask for an early review of the EHCP as 15 hours at a tuition centre isn’t sufficient. That isn’t a suitable full time education. There should be therapies and other provision in the EHCP being provided too. I take it you aren’t officially EHE anymore? If you appeal the EHCP at any point you can ask for social care provision to be looked at too.

If you are struggling because of your own needs you should also ask for an assessment from adult social care for you.

For support for DS contact your local Young Carers service and Sibs.

Thatsnotmycar

Thanks so much for your detailed reply. I think we've been fobbed off. I'll try to reopen the case and put my food down. Do you know if this will be reassessment or the Child in need status will remain so now we can continue from where it was left off in 2021? So basically what I am asking is do I as for reassessment or should I ask them to provide a support plan not that we know Child in Need
Thanks

Unless you have been informed otherwise DD should still be classed as a ‘child in need’. However, I would go with requesting full assessments both for you as a carer and DD as a disabled child thereby being a child in need. On their website Contact have model letters you can use for both.