EHCP support thread

[Phineyj]

My DD (10) is being assessed for EHCP. The council refused to assess (despite her already being diagnosed with ADHD, ASD, hypermobility and vision problems following eye surgery).

School have been supportive throughout and they are going above and beyond to keep her engaged in education.

She's about to go into year 6 though.

I took the LA to the tribunal and won.

They must produce the plan by 4th August. I think they probably will (they've stuck to deadlines so far...ish...). But I've got all the IPSEA complaint letter templates primed!

The hardest thing about the whole process is that no-one else in my life understands it or what it's like to spend all your free time essentially begging people to document the deficits your child has.

It is also a hard realisation that no-one cares much about your child's education except you.

I am also a teacher so I feel sad on behalf of the SEN DC I teach as I am told little about their needs (I spent a whole day doing DofE with one recently...I don't even know what her EHCP says...)

Join me if you are also grimly trekking through the EHCP jungle!!

@ThomasWasTortured I have considered it but unsure really if it will class as that or not. He definitely does not respond to people in lots of situations, but I’m not sure how common that is for a 5 year old really, I guess we’ll know more as he gets older. He will often whisper to me when he wants to initiate dialogue with a grown up, then once I’ve started the conversation he will speak. For example when meeting his new teacher for the first time on INSET day (we went in for a look round which was great) he was pulling me down and whispering in my ear, things like “can I can tell her the name of a footballer?” so I said yes of course, and then he would speak to her. He did this with most things he wanted to say, but was okay responding when she asked him questions. Although often he ignores direct questions too!
He’s a complicated little chap, I’m certain his needs are higher than anyone realises.

That's really interesting @TeaInTheGarden.

DD currently does the following characters: elderly Indian lady, Valley girl, footballer!

Hi @ThomasWasTortured thanks for the suggestion re selective mutism. It is very interesting I have just been having a read, the similarities are very strong, like @TeaInTheGarden I am also unsure, simply because the broader picture, and other issues could easily cross over and the social interaction is consistently difficult for her, something I noted from age 2-3 but thought was just a little shyness, until other things started to happen (or rather became more obvious). @TeaInTheGarden my DD was also first to the carpet in nursery and am told first to line up in school. Always silent compliant, never any trouble.
She did not go in to school today, so have another meeting tomorrow, been a little stressful again to say the least. The LA seem to have no regard for any of this...
@TeaInTheGarden I would definitely put in your application about your DS not being able to communicate his needs effectively to certain adults, I think there is even a question regarding this. I didn't really think about it until I was filling out the form when it occurred to me DD doesn't communicate her needs because she literally can't, which leads to frustration and anger etc... I had to do the form myself because at the time, the school senco wasn't supportive sadly. Fingers crossed for you :0)

SAR push back by LA requiring DC's consent....

@MrsLamb how old is your dc? In the end we did our SAR from my DC as at 14 I knew we would have to deal with this and it was easier to do it in her name as then I only had to provide one set of ID..... just send them a letter from the DC with permission for you to do the SAR with a copy of their passport / birth certificate.

Gosh can they do that? What's the law say?

That is normal when it is an older DC who is competent to understand it themselves. A letter from DC allowing you to act on their behalf will be sufficient.

Third day of not attending school this term for my 5yo today.

Good news is he has finally told me something that bothers him at school! He’s a pro at masking and won’t talk to me much about school so this is a breakthrough. He says when they ask questions and he really knows the answer and puts his hand up, if he isn’t chosen then he feels “really really really really angry”.
This is zero surprise to me as this is exactly how I’d expect him to feel about not getting a turn etc, but I’m so glad he’s articulated it about school, as I was beginning to think he really was just totally fine there, and I was crazy. I can’t get my head round how the boy I have at home is able to keep a lid on this anger, but he’s somehow masking it 100% from the teacher.
I’m hoping the Ed Psych will notice when he gets observed??

I’m so glad he’s told me but now I’m left wondering, how on earth do they ever accommodate for this kind of thing?! I really can’t see any way round this kind of thing unless he just isn’t involved in whole class teaching!

@CHAKRAlight did your daughter make it in today? And how was the meeting?

Can I please join? I am feeling so defeated tonight and like I’m on the verge of crying and not stopping.

My LEA are scum and are pushing me to my limit. Our hearing for refusal to issue is days away and the LEA suddenly have new evidence they have asked me to agree to; they sent in the Ed Psych to assess DD as part of the transition process (they have never mentioned doing this before). It was just an observation so I’m not sure what use it is, especially as DD recognised her and said she felt extremely self conscious.

It also turns out that DD Sen teacher has been helpfully feeding back information to the LEA and has concluded after knowing DD for less than a week, that DD does not mask and she is surprised by my concerns. Much contrary to the evidence.

I am not sure I can take this stress and I am so close to withdrawing the appeal. I have no support and feel utterly betrayed by the sen teacher , who is frankly useless at her job to start with .

@TeaInTheGarden I'm secondary not primary but we have a school policy of no hands up questioning and we're not unusual in that.

@GreysToenatomy welcome and I'm sorry about your LA. But don't withdraw! I'm sure SENDIST will see right through them.

@GreysToenatomy, I second @Phineyj, don’t withdraw! Keep reminding yourself the majority of appeals are upheld.

@TeaInTheGarden if the school insists on hands up, and many have moved away from this now, I have seen it sometimes be successful where the pupil gets X number of tickets a lesson to answer with and if they hold up a ticket they will be chosen. Once the tickets are gone they can still put their hand up but aren’t guaranteed to be asked. Wouldn’t work for all though. Or would DS write down (if his writing is good enough for that to work, might be too young) his answers and at the end of the whole class input the teacher makes a point of looking at his answers.

I won’t withdraw as it’s only a few days away but I feel I need to step back as it’s so consuming.

I have just cancelled a meeting with the Sen teacher scheduled tomorrow because I can not bear to talk to her right now. It’s something that can wait until I can digest it all.

That seems sensible @GreysToenatomy. You need to save your energy for the actual hearing. I'm sure evidence submitted at the last minute is considered a right pain by the tribunal. How long did you have to wait for the hearing and is it in person? If so, do you have to travel far? Just wondering as this will be me some time next year.

@Phineyj I have rejected the late evidence but I’m not sure it will matter; I suspect they will be allowed to use it anyway.

It is an online hearing and I have waited 11 months for it. I need some tips on composing myself as it’s so emotive.

@ThomasWasTortured Do you have any statistics to upheld refusal to issue appeals? I have tried searching but to no avail.

@GreysToenatomy online erk! I hadn't realised that was a possibility. I think you should put everything important onto paper and stick it up behind the computer. Plus a motivational picture of DC. And maybe Gandhi!

Also book in some things you enjoy doing for the days afterwards. Have you anyone who can be in the house or on the end of the phone to support you?

Hi @TeaInTheGarden yes DD did go back in today, thanks :0), now she is staying in for both play times, before it was just for lunch time but now in the morning as well, she doesn't want to be pulled (even playfully) and its too noisy outside. The meeting went ok we are hoping to get her to do a couple of full days next week maybe 3, then more the following week. I am so glad your DS told you what was wrong, there is always something when you scratch the surface isn't there but I know it can take time to find out, same with my DD...I would love her to be able to play outside with the other kids but for now this seems to be the only way to get her to go in. we are taking it a day at a time, maybe she will just not right now.

@GreysToenatomy I completely get how betrayed you feel re the senco, I find that really underhand to feed something back to the LEA that goes against what you have put forward. My senco has been awful, that bad I no longer meet with her but directly with another teacher, she has been no help whatsoever, I sent my application without her input as I knew she would go against me, much like what has happened with you sadly.

Don't give up, 'masking' is something many sencos don't seem to recognise, I have been to a few meetings for carers of children with autism (or suspected autism) and so many of the parents said the sencos at their childrens schools did not believe them or were just as you say 'useless' and no help. I know only of one woman who praised their sons senco teacher but told me this senco has a son who is autistic so really understands and was really good....

I think@ThomasWasTortured is probably the most knowledgeable about all this for advice and so on but I would say can you phone any of the advice lines for some last minute help, I contacted some of the advice people listed on the LA website, (but this was when preparing the application so you may have already done that).

I would make it clear the senco only knew your child for a week, it is not long enough to form an accurate assessment of her needs and also your DD felt under pressure when the Ed psych came to observe her for transition and therefore cannot accurately reflect how she is on any given day because she knew she was being observed...I don't know i'm not that great with the laws and stuff but I urge you not to back down. It is easy to say I know, but keep going, I know how desperately stressful it is and demoralising at times but I wish you every success and I really know how you feel about crying....it is a tough road but keep going you know your child better than any expert or professional she is your child and you know what she needs. Good luck!

The words of encouragement are really helping. I did underestimate the level of stress I would feel.

Do parents take photos of their DC to the hearing?

@GreysToenatomy for refusal to issue appeals, 88.8% are upheld. The LA is only successful in 11.2% of cases. You can see an overview of the most recent statistics here, the article also includes a link to more detailed statistics if you are interested.

If you need 5 mins during the hearing, ask. Make sure the bundle is complete and accurate (you would be surprised how often it isn’t) and that you know your way around it whether you prefer working from the paper or electronic version - annotate/bookmark/sticky tabs/your own index/colour code, whatever works for you. This can help you stay composed.

@Phineyj in person hearings are staying virtual rather than F2F, unless there is a specific reason F2F is required.

Some have photos, yes.

If it's virtual no-one can see what you have behind the camera?

I think the actual child can get a bit lost in all the bureaucratic paperwork so it's good to have a reminder.

Although dealing with my LA is like fighting a giant rice pudding, armed with a paper spork, their ECHP "portal" does allow you to upload a picture of the child to the landing page, which is a nice touch.

And thank you for the encouraging statistic, @ThomasWasTortured!

Really sorry you've experienced this. It really is hard enough supporting our kids given their challenges, without being gaslit by the exact services that are paid to support and meet their needs. If they put their hands up and said, 'we know it's not enough - but it is all we can afford right now', that would be one thing, but it is the growing corruption of what should be evidence-led services, as crude rebuttal machines, operating way outside professional and statutory guidelines, that is the real shocker. And this is very frightening to encounter as a parent. For if the law/professional codes no longer provide boundaries ensuring ethical practice, fairness and transparency is lost.

So I know how you feel.

I know conventional wisdom is not to alienate anyone in the LA, but faced with unethical practice/abuse of power, for example by some LA EPs, I wonder if we do need to start to hold individuals to account by reporting to the HCPC where they appear to breach professional standards. Or to refer to the ICO where inaccurate personal data is being held on our children (eg. conditions mischaracterised in the face of clinical evidence in order to reduce obligation for provision). Feeling powerless in the face of significant organisational unfairness towards one's child is a really horrible thing to experience. One end of this is organisational abuse which can cause trauma.