EHCP support thread no. 3

[Phineyj]

A new thread for when no. 2 is full up.
Link to thread no. 1: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/special_educational_needs/4834986-ehcp-support-thread
Link to thread no. 2:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/special_educational_needs/4989146-ehcp-support-thread-no-2

I am the mum of an 11 year old girl with SEN and have spent the last 20 months battling for my local authority to issue an EHCP to support her transition from primary to secondary school. We are currently after draft stage after two tribunals. I've had so much useful advice and moral support from posters on here.

This new thread is here to help everyone, whether you're just starting out or are a battle-hardened veteran of years of this.

There is no such thing as a stupid question and there are many acronyms and technical terms so please ask for an explanation of anything that you don't understand.

SEN: special educational needs (sometimes SEND: special educational needs and disability)
SENCO: teacher at school charged with overall responsibility for students on roll with SEN
ECHNA: education care and health needs assessment - the process of a local authority commissioning reports to find out a child's needs
EHCP: the education care and health plan that details a child's needs and the agreed provision to meet them; a legally binding document
SENDIST: the special educational needs and disability tribunal - an independent appeal panel which considers parental appeals against Education Authority decisions about special educational needs.

Thank you. The lady from the LA wasn't great at all. The head teacher said the application clearly hadn't been read properly and she said that was nothing to do with her, it was the panel's fault. I wasn't impressed tbh and I don't think the head teacher was either.

This is the problem with mediation. If you have to appeal again, it is worth knowing you only have to consider mediation, you don’t have to actively partake.

@elliejjtiny welcome and don't be afraid to appeal.

I declined mediation both times. As my DH said at the time, we think she needs an EHCP and they don't - what's there to mediate about?

I also don't think they read our paperwork and judging by the fact I also had to appeal refuse to issue, I don't think they read the assessment reports either!

We have the opposite problem. DD, also autistic, masks like a champ and is very sociable, so her cognitive, learning and emotional issues constantly surprise people.

Hello I have some questions and this seems like the place to ask.
Dd has EHCP currently in mainstream. I am appealing B,F and I. LA believe needs can be met in ms. I want to name section 41 school. I have sent her EHCP to them myself and also had discussions with them (they don't do visits). I have asked the LA to consult. Will they because they still think ms is where she should be? covering caseworker clearly didn't understand any of our last conversation, and hasn't forwarded emails she said she would. (getting though to any of them is a nightmare, will try again tomorrow)
I am sending SEND35 off a.s.a.p but unsure of what to put in my choice of school. Should it just be specialist? I understand the section 41 school in question has to agree they can meet need etc.
Just for reference this school is exactly what dd needs- small class sizes, the cohort sounds an amazing match for her.
I am a bit stuck here..

@Wednesdayy123 they should still consult.

I understand the section 41 school in question has to agree they can meet need etc.

They don’t. Section 41 schools can be named even if they object. You only need an offer of a place from wholly independent schools. The only lawful reasons for not naming your preference are:
-The setting is unsuitable for the age, ability, aptitude or special educational needs (“SEN”) of the child or young person; or
-The attendance of the child or young person would be incompatible with the provision of efficient education for others; or
-The attendance of the child or young person would be incompatible with the efficient use of resources.

If you know what particular school is your preference, put that. If not, state the type. You can update later.

Hi everyone! I would be grateful for any advice. DD is autistic, she is in Y5 and currently in a fantastic MS school. She has an EHCP. However her attendance has been sporadic and she has extreme anxiety, meaning she has been unable to attend at all since Easter. This is a pattern repeated across each term; she attends, gets burnt out and then crashes. The school are doing their best but I have come to accept that they just cannot meet her needs.
Our annual review is this afternoon. I intend to say that I want a change of placement to a recently opened LA school for autistic children. Can anyone offer support or advice to ensure that we have the best chance of success?

If a child needs full time 1:1, is this something that is recommended in an EP report?

Or could an OT/SLT also make this recommendation (or is it not in their remit)?

@Ponche it could be any of those.

@SaltBlossom good luck with the AR meeting. If it isn’t too late it can help to make notes beforehand on what amendments are needed for each section and the evidence to support that. Take minutes during the meeting. In the meantime, is alternative provision in place?

In an ideal world, what should I expect to happen once the LA has sent the finalised EHCPs to my children's schools? It's been a couple of weeks. One SENCo proposed a meeting "early next half-term" (ie, now) but hasn't followed up and the other school hasn't said anything at all. I guess I need to start chasing but is it reasonable to expect the schools to reach out in some way or maybe start providing the provision?

@SpaceInvader321 chase the SENCO. If the EHCP has been finalised, it should be followed. Is there anything in F detailed, specified and quantified or is it all vague and woolly?

The initial Plans were pretty woolly and watered down. The LA is in the process (they say) of updating them with the amendments that were agreed with their EP and the SENCos in co-production meetings. I'm expecting the revised versions any day now, but am also expecting the changes won't be thorough enough and we'll likely need to appeal B&F.

You should still chase the SENCO, but if F is vague and woolly there may not be anything that is enforceable.

Thank you, it went ok I think. No alternative provision, it's never been offered and I haven't chased it as her anxiety mostly prevents her either engaging with new adults or going to new places.
She has been prescribed fluoxetine but refuses to even try it.

@SaltBlossom I would request AP. It can start as child led distance learning (e.g. spectrum space boxes or subscription boxes/subscriptions/memberships or online pre-recorded lessons if they would be suitable) based around DD’s interests and build up. IPSEA has a model letter you can use. The LA should also be ensuring any provision detailed, specified and quantified in F is received.

Ok thank you I will!

I have another question - if I know that I want her to move settings can I request that the LA consult with the proposed school now, or do I need to wait for them to agree to amend the plan as an outcome of the annual review?

You can make it known now your preference is for a move to school X, but it won't change the process. The LA must inform you if they are going to amend on not within 4 weeks of the meeting and if they are, issue an amendment notice at the same time. At that point, you can formally state your preferred placement and make comments on any amendments you feel are needed. If the LA is going to amend, they then have a further 8 weeks to finalise.

I've got a quick question on when to deploy any private assessments. We're at refusal to assess appeal, final documents due by July 5th. I'm 99% sure they will capitulate on or before appeal (on the papers, date in October). We've just been awarded DLA so will submit that and an email I have from school SLT before the 5th.

I want to use the backdated dla for both a full OT assessment, including sensory and an EP assessment, plus a SALT assessment. When is the best time to do this? LA seem to do inadequate assessments.

Am aware the good places will have waiting lists but is there a limitation on how old the assessment can be to be used? I was thinking of aiming for early in the new school year- would that make sense?

We have asd and dcd diagnoses already and Paediatrics have accepted our private asd assessment so that's covered off.

My daughter has always said that any nursery/educational setting do not want her youngest son. He's been in placements (nursery) since he was 12 months old and she went back to work.

She has two older children in primary school and her youngest is now in the school nursery. He is three and a half and has been assessed by an educational psychologist at 12-18 months stage.

All three children have additional needs.

Her youngest child has global development delay, no speech, hypotonia, hearing loss and epilepsy.

We applied for an EHCP in January this year. We sent back some amendments we would like to add before it gets finalised. We did not know that the school had to send back any comments as to whether they could meet his needs. The case worker rang my daughter today and said that they had not heard back from the school and the deadline had passed.

We know nothing about the process - we've not done this before. My daughter is convinced that the school do not want him. They tried to prevent him from starting nursery by saying that they were full and he did not have a place, despite taking younger children than him in January. When we questioned their admissions policy they suddenly found a 12 hr place for him. When my daughter asked if he could have his full 30 hrs entitlement in one setting, as recommended by his epilepsy consultant, he was offered a further 6 hrs. So this nursery is his main setting.

This school do not comply with her older son's requirement for prescribed drinks. He has ARFID, delayed speech and is waiting for an ASD assessment. He has fortified drinks prescribed as his blood tests showed deficiencies. He has lost weight and much lighter than he was more than a year ago. These drinks need to be stored in the fridge. My daughter sends two small bottles of diluted/fortified drink (half juice, half prescription drink is the only way he will drink them) which need to be drunk throughout the day. He has one bottle before school and one bottle after school (4 bottles) so half of his drinks need to be in school time. The nursery do not store them in the fridge and they are giving him two bottles of drink at 3pm (home time) and making him drink them under time pressure while we wait for him in the playground. He gags on the drinks as they are more unpalatable when warm. Sometimes it is 3.25 when he eventually emerges from his class as he really struggles to drink them quickly. The school 'pretend' that he drank them during the day, but of course he tells us differently and we have seen him with the two bottles through his classroom window at the end of the day.

My granddaughter is in year 3 and is waiting for ASD assessment. She has no friends. She says that she is very sad and lonely at school. She follows other children around but they never include her in their games. When we have mentioned this to school they say that they'll keep an eye on the situation but nothing has ever been done to actively encourage friendships. She begs to go to another school. We do understand that another school can't force friendships but maybe could be more proactive in encouraging friendships and having a buddy system.

My daughter is upset that the school appears to do nothing to support her children.

Would it be possible to name a different school on the EHCP and then apply there for her other two children to attend? I think that the relationship between this present school and my daughter is irrevocably broken as my daughter does not trust their assurances that her children's needs are being fulfilled adequately. (Her youngest actually had a seizure and fell headfirst into the water trough and, instead of taking him out, they filmed the episode 'for evidence'.) Is it too late to apply to a different school for September?

She would be unable to drop her children at different schools due to distance/time and working.

@MyOtherCarIsAPorsche the LA is in breach of the statutory timescales. On their website, IPSEA (a charity who supports parents with SEN matters) has a model letter you can send to the LA. Post back here if that doesn’t work. DD could request another school is named. It isn’t too late for September, unless DD needs to appeal the EHCP. However, even if the LA name it, there is no guarantee there will be spaces for her other DC. Particularly for DGS1 who is in nursery and class size limits will apply.

What type of school is it? Is it independent?

It isn’t unusual for DC to attend different schools. DD could request transport, which could help.

For DGD, request a meeting with the SENCO. For DGS1, does he have an individual health care plan? DD should request a meeting with the SENCO about this, too. I would also speak to the dietician about alternatives. There are lots of oral nutritional supplements, including ones that are a smaller volume. Have their parents considered requesting EHCNAs for them?

Reading IPSEA and SOSSEN’s websites will be a helpful starting point for DD.

@Macramepotholder personally, I would wait until when/if you have to appeal further down the line. In the past, SENDIST mostly considered reports up to around 2 years old up to date. Over the last few years SENDIST has often considered reports several months younger than that out of date. The benefit of waiting is if you need to appeal refusal to issue then content/placement, some professionals will update the previous report/add an addendum if it needs updating but is relatively recent.

I have finally got alternative provision for ds. However it's not suitable (3hours of online tuition) he struggles to sit for 5 minutes without movement. The movement breaks will be longer than the time he will engage. We are going to give it a go, as evidence really that its not suitable. Has anyone had ap could you give me some ideas of what to ask for? I suggested forest school multiple times but apparently we were to far through the school year and no places. I had been asking since last year so that was a poor excuse.

@Wednesdayy123 if online doesn’t work for DS it isn’t suitable, and 3hrs is not full-time. AP can be whatever works. There are numerous possibilities e.g. care farm, gaming APs, sports or outward bounds APs, art or music APs, tuition centre, home tuition (which doesn’t have to be formal academic learning if that isn’t suitable), hospital school, small group tuition in a centre/unit the LA uses, 1:1 or small group tuition in the library/community centre/church hall.

If you have a forest school AP in mind have you asked them if they can accommodate DS? It may be they don’t have space at this point in the year but it could equally be the LA lying to you.

Me too! I hate it when they keep putting things like "Lucy to be supported in maths sessions" or "Lucy to receive speech and language therapy". Why are they so allergic to putting verbs in sentences? It would be just as easy to write "Lucy will be supported..." etc.

Unfortunately the phase transfer exception wouldn't apply for an appeal against refusal to assess. It only applies when a child already has an EHCP and it has been amended to name the placement for the next phase of education.

You can sometimes get an appeal expedited for a RTA appeal. Some on this thread have done just that.