Sen transport to school stressing me saying ds is not eligible

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We live 2.2 miles away from the Sen high school ds is starting this September. The threshold for transport is 3 miles, if you live in this you may not be eligible for transport. They now want evidence of why ds cannot walk the 1 hour journey to and from school, other than his diagnosis of autism and not being able to walk this journey alone what else am I meant to provide ?!
He already receives transport to his Sen primary in which we live just under the 2 miles threshold.

I don’t drive so am not able to take ds to school, ds dad works and cannot be available twice a day to take ds and pick him up. We also have 2 toddlers who need to be in nursery for 9am.

I am so so stressed out, also I cannot get in touch with anyone from the send team, they still haven’t told me ds has got a place at the high school, I emailed and rang numerous time, all ignored, in the end I had to phone the actual high school and ask if ds was on the list. Please help.

It may be different in your LA but in mine SEN school transport is completely separate to caseworkers etc. (I think they actually share an office but you'd never know.) There is no point trying to talk to the general Sen team about transport.

We never expect to hear about transport until about 2 days before the start of term. You just send the application in and hear nothing until nearer the time.

I wonder if partly there are just cogs that haven't turned yet? Perhaps a phone call with the school representative would be helpful - they may give you reassurance or insight that they wouldn't put into an email.

It was the walk that was an hour, not the ride.

My son is 16 and has been gettng trandpiort since he was four
In a mini bus with a PA

I don't know why you are getting so much grief - its hard to get into a sen high school he must need that level of support so of course you are not being difficult being worried about this.
What did the school say? I am guessing you just need evidence he needed transport for primary / letter from specialist he is not fully aware of danager / does not have road safety awareness etc.
You know I think some of the school transport councils are paying for like for students who don't have a safe walking route ... but that's their parents chose to buy in rural area is ridiculous. But a child with disability or a child who needs extra support that's exactly what I would hope our taxes go on.

I’m confused - you say in one post you can’t send him in a taxi - ‘Ds suffers from anxiety quite badly around change and routine, he would become very distressed going alone in a taxi’ in a later post you say he currently gets a minibus the later still you answer a question about asking for a minibus and say no, you just want the taxi provision he currently has.

What does he have now, OP, and what do you want? ‘provide transport’ is very wide and as well as the specific transport your son needs, you do need to make it evidence based as to why. Can you go to the school and speak to them?

Also, what are your plans to help him transition into adulthood?

Your problem is he is too close and so they expect him to walk.

That's quite different than the issue a lot of people have where the school is farther than the one he'd normally go to.

If he's legally entitled you will be able to show it. But the fact that it's inconvenient for you nursery isn't a reason.

Use the school as part of your evidence. It could be a safe guarding concern if he was to get the bus alone or walk alone. Even a taxi service he may need a chaperone. The school may still be open. Ring them today. My daughter’s school have been really good with any help I’ve needed. His diagnosis report could be evidence of how vulnerable he is. I hope you get this sorted. His dla could be more evidence.

OP, ask this to be moved to the SEN board. You'll get the answers you need there. AIBU isn't the right place for this type of query

I actually think the person was trying to help you with the application. As in you arent automatically eligible on grounds of distance, so when you do the application form remember to include the detail of why the disability means walking or public transport isnt an option. You will have evidence in your ehcp and school reports that indicate why. They wont care about logistics or childcare or work. They will care about road safety.

The thing with his earlier transport is that as kids age, the expectations change. So he might have qualified before simply because of the distance, but now he doesn't. So his mum will have to show that he is unable to walk in the same way other 12 year olds walk.

And I suspect there are 11 year olds who's parents still walk or drive them because they think it's not safe, or because they have siblings that go elsewhere etc, even if they are under the 3 miles.

This is the answer.

Hes going to am SEN school its sbout safety not distsnce .

My autistic DS could get the bus to school an back - that does not mean the OP's child can do the same! She's made it clear that he can't go in a taxi alone either because he'd need a PA with him to help keep him calm and keep him and driver safe.

I can't believe so many people think the OP is being unreasonable. Why would his needs change the year he moves from Primary to Secondary? The huge change of it is likely to cause him to be much MORE dysregulated.

If the system is paying for a PA and a taxi driver and a taxi. that is just not sustainable,that has to be a different solution.

Hey i just wanted to pop on, i havent read all the replies so don't know if this has already been suggested. But ive had the exact same problem for my ds this year in reguards to highschool and sen transport i was advised to get intouch with his pead and get a letter sent to together for children (whose in charge in my area reguarding transport) to say my son wouldnt be able to safely take himself and all his diagnosis why

He has a car, taxi service provided by the local authority, a Skoda 4x4 to be exact with a PA. The local authority have a contract with this taxi company along with many others and they provide their services to schools.

Then that’s upto the goverment to sort out isn’t it. It’s not upto all us Sen parents to sort out. Its the law stated they are entitled to this help then they should receive it.

I’m going to start a complaint about the lack of communication

If he genuinely cannot get there independently by any means they will provide transport.

But they have to check this. School transport costs are absolutely bankrupting councils, they can only provide this for pupils who absolutely need it. Your lack of driving license/toddlers nursery timetable arent relevant factors.

I don’t think you have any idea do you? My DS is 11 and we can’t even let him out the front door without him wandering into the road- our 2 year old knows better.
Stranger danger? No idea what this is.
Gets lost? Probably wouldn’t even seek help even if he could actually communicate he was lost.
He would have no idea how to catch a bus, what bus he would need to catch or from where- even if we showed him multiple times.
We have lived in our house for 8 years and i couldn’t even let him to the park 5 minutes away by himself even though we have been there countless times with him.
This isn’t a lack of teaching him low level life skills as your post suggests, it is simply he doesn’t have the capacity to be out in the world processing everything around him while having to process safety etc at the same time, he is in his own world majority of the time.

@MidnightPatrol Stop posting. You are ignorant of disabilities. My son will be starting school soon and is very likely autistic. We will be using reins for as long as possible to make sure he is safe. I bet many parents don't have to do that when their child starts school. Many autistic children act much younger than their age and are developmentally way behind.

If he has a place at a SEN school he absolutely needs it.

Secondary school is a big step up for all kids and they grow into being able to manage more. For your sons long term prospects it will really help him if you focus a lot on helping him learn to use public transport. Its a good few weeks away so worth practising.

I’m shocked by the limited understanding of autism on this thread. OP has repeatedly said her son has limited awareness of danger. This isn’t something you can teach a child with autism in the way you can a NT child. My DS is almost 6 and thinks nothing of running across a road to reach something he has seen and likes. I can tell him off for this and explain the dangers as I always would but he still would do it again.

OP’s child has severe enough SEN to be placed in specialist provision, they don’t accept children with low needs in those schools. My DS is mainstream because he’s highly academic so whilst he can and does elope, the mainstream setting are able to cope with him. MS school can’t manage OP’s child’s needs so he is not a child who is capable of walking over 4 miles a day independently and this can’t be taught.

Please can people start to educate themselves on autism, maybe we all need mandatory training. It seems to only be understood by people who have direct experience.

Thats not true. There can be a lot of reasons people need SEN schooling. Theres a disabled teen in my road who gets a scheduled bus to travel to school. It took a lot of practise but it works.