The educational psychologist told me that she doesn’t think he’s “severe” enough for a specialist school.
What do you think? LAs and LA professionals often tell parents their DC doesn’t need SS when they do and it is about the LA saving money.
I received a draft copy of his EHCP on Friday. All seems ok
Check the LA very carefully. It is unusual for the LA’s initial draft to be OK. It is likely other amendments will be necessary, not just about toileting.
Go through all the reports with highlighters. Highlight all DS’s special educational needs in one colour and all the provision to meet the needs in another colour. Each need should have corresponding provision.
Then go through the draft and make sure all the highlighted needs are in B and the highlighted provision is in F. Make a note of anything the LA have omitted from the draft, any needs without corresponding provision, any woolly and vague wording, and anything the reports have failed to include.
Check for vague and woolly wording such as “access to”, “would benefit from”, “regular”, “up to”, “or equivalent”, “opportunities for”, “as appropriate”, “would be useful/helpful”, “such as”, “e.g.”, “etc.”, “as required”, “as advised”, “key adult(s)”, “small group”. A woolly and vague EHCP means it isn’t worth the paper it is written on. DS might not get the support he needs, and it would be unenforceable. The wording in F needs to be detailed, specified and quantified.
When you come across woolly and vague wording, check the reports to see if they are woolly and vague or if the LA has watered down provision. If the reports are vague and woolly, ask the LA to go back to the report writer(s) to make the reports detailed, specified and quantified. Provision in EHCPs is taken from the reports, so if the reports are vague and woolly, the EHCP will be too. If the LA has watered down provision, make sure to request the LA sticks to the wording in the reports.
Then make sure any health or social care provision that educates or trains is in F. For example, LAs like to put therapies like SALT and OT in G when it belongs in F.