AIBU to think this service isnt good enough?

[ShadeofViolet]

DS is nearly 4 - ASD with speech delay. At his last Portage assessment (last month) it was found he has the expressive language of an 18 month old and the receptive language of a 20 month old.

We did the more than words course - this helped alot, and got him up to those levels.

Salt came in the 6 weeks holidays and we spoke about my worries - she suggested a visual timetable.

he was suppose to come to his IEP meeting in October - didnt turn up.

She said that she would sent an assistant into preschool to help the staff learn how to talk to DS. The first one came and declared that she didnt think DS had ASD, the second didnt turn up.

She has now spoken to the preschool and said she will be at the next IEP meeting in March - she wont be coming before then, the school dont know what to do know with regards to encouraging speech. I have called and she isnt returning my calls.

AIBU, or am I being over optimistic of what I should expect from the service for a boy with such speech delay? My worry is that he starts school next September and I dont know how to build on the speech he has.

Sorry I don't know what the service is like generally but this doesn't sound right to me so bumping for you.

I totally understand your frustration here having tried and failed to access any speech therapy for DD# in over 18 months now! If there was someone I could appeal to I did and I still got nowhere.

I would suggest making an absolute pain in the bum of yourself to the manager of the speech therapy area you are in - phone and write and start talking about making a formal complaint. If you get nowhere then put in an official complaint to the NHS primary care trust about it and from there you will have the right to take it on to the NHS ombudsman (where I am heading to next!)

I would also suggest you ask the nursery/portage about completing a CAF form re his needs and this will hopefully trigger a TAC meeting (team around the child) so that a speech therapist will pretty much have to attend and communicate with you.

Do you think his needs may mean he needs extra help when he is in school - I would presume yes. I would also advise you to start looking into getting a statement for him if you can - that way you can get speech therapy quantified and then there is a legal obligation on the local authority to ensure it happens. Start at the IPSEA website and take a trip into the SN forum on mumsnet here for advice about this. It can be a long and hard task to get there but sadly the provision for speech once they start school is even less than you are likely to get before school. Personally I am furious about the whole lack of provision for children with speech issues.

Good luck - keep up the fight, even if you are feeling like you are at a dead end.

oops, clearly you are on the SN boards! Thought I was in chat!!

Yanbu

Complain. Loudly. Don't worry about it impacting on your ds or what they think of you. SEN provision is one place where that old phrase "the empty vessel makes the most noise" is reversed. The more noise you make the more you get to put in your vessel.. erm.. you know what I mean. I'm sure there's a better saying but I can't think of one right now!

I think this website [http://www.spiesforparents.cpd.usu.edu/Start.htm here]
has some good clips - not sure how much of it isn't just a variation on the more than words theme but it might help.

Sorry, not my most articulate today!