What to do Ed Psych's appointment?

[debs40]

Months ago, we booked our own Ed Psych to do a report at beginning of November.

DS has now been granted an SA without anticipated tribunal battle!

The return date for a decision on statement/notice in lieu is 30th Nov.

Our Ed Psych has asked us not to let the LA Ed Psych see DS before she does as this will invalidate her test results.

However, how can I stop this. I can't say that to the LA and I can't refuse consent to appointments without good reason without looking obstructive.

I have been in touch with the LA to see how long it usually takes for them to arrange an appointment but given they have to make a deciion by 30th Nov, I can't see them leaving it until then (although you never know!).

I have also asked our EP if she can see earlier.

Any advice??

Oh, and our EP has arranged an appointment at her office. Would you not expect her to see him at school too??

She comes very highly recommended and had a waiting list longer than others I'd tried.

In fact no one with particular expertise in ASD and tribunals could offer anything before Oct when I booked in June!

Debs - will the LEA Ed Psych actually do any formal tests? Ours didn't, to my surprise, just wrote a report based on one observation in school, talking to other professionals, our private sensory processing and auditory processing assessments and a long chat with me . Apparently it is at their discretion whether they do any formal testing. Is it possible similar might happen with you? Could you ask her, innocently, what she will be doing? If so you might be ok for the full formal private assessments.

We still got a statement (25 + 5 hours), in process of being finalised

ds' Ed Psych visits at home not school so wouldn't read too much into that. Ask her if she can bring it forward.

Ampers, that is interesting. Might be worth speaking to the LA Ed Psych then.

LIZS, it is our EP (the one we are paying for) who is having the assessment at her office. She can only give us a slot in Nov.

The LA EP is likely to have assessed by then so the same tests cannot be used by our own EP - hence the problem.

As far as I'm aware private EP's don't visit the child at school. Not too sure that many schools would welcome them to be honest, as usually parents employ them because they are not happy with school academic provision or the findings of LEA EP's.

When we went to see a private EP, both times we went to his office. Private EP's tend to do diagnostic testing using WISC tests etc, rather than observation, lasted approx 1 1/2 hrs . His report mainly concentrated on the scores in each of the particular tests; what the scores meant in regard to my DS, he gave a number of recommendations for school (ignored), points to watch for in future and a diagnosis.

When my son saw the LEA EP recently,the meeting lasted 4 hours, he saw my DS for approx 40 mins of that; just asked him some questions re school, home, hobbies etc and asked him to do a bit of writing and did some basic maths. The rest of the time he spoke to me. Felt sorry for the poor man, he needed a dictaphone. Only took a few notes throughout the meeting, but I ended up with a very good 7 page report, detailing DS's gobal difficulties, strategies for home and school etc.

I know our experience with the LEA EP was extremely fortunate; most parents in this area don't appear to rate him.