Should I complain about the school and who to

[daisysue2]

School is a top mainstream primary. I feel that they are letting down my DD who has 28 hours on her statement. Even though I ask for work to support her they don't give it. I ask for a maths programme to be put in place they won't do it, I ask for an English programme for her to follow they won't do it. They say they are a mainstream school and don't have the facilities (of either an independent or Special school).

They seem more bothered about covering the topics that are on the national curriculum than making sure that she can do the basic skills.

So there isn't a programme making sure that she, and other statemented children are learning the basics.

I believe they have a a number of children who are allowed to fail as this won't affect their figures and they aren't really bothered about these children reaching any serious level of attainment so long as they are quite and don't disrupt the rest of the class.

They do have great LSAs who do the best they can but these LSAs don't have any support from a SN teacher and the SENCO is only concerned about budgets and not interested in the children.

I truely believe that the school is letting down the special needs children.

Where should I go from here. Will the LEA be bothered by a complaint as I'm sure they all in it together, keeping costs down without doing very much.

ANy one else been through something similar and what did you do?

Yes I probably have copious amounts of evidence from various meetings and other parents who are willing to complain.

Surrey LEA

Sounds just like DDs school, doing as little as possible, took the SN money and use it elsewhere! We decided we will move DD to another school...Im fed up of the nodding dog SENCO who then does nothing!

We dont have a statement and everything seems to take so long, as in getting outside agencies to help. Were moving DD for her sake and to reduce the battles...cowardly really!

I think the government has done yet another enquiry into how SEN works in school so new systems may follow on from that....hopefully! In the meantime complain if you have the stamina! :)

If you can move school you should.

If you can't then you need to make a formal complaint to the board of governors to start with.

All of what they are telling you is wrong. You DD should be on a 3rd wave intervention for maths and english - which is essentially exactly what you asked for. 1:1 support following some programme.

Also try ringing parent partnership. If you can't move school they may cme in to a formal meeting between you, the senco and the HT to back you up. They will also be better able to advise you about what school should be doing for your DD

IndigoBell what is 3rd wave intervention and how does it work compared to say just being with her LSA for support.

3rd wave intervention is the name given to any intervention done 1:1

(2nd wave is small group, and 1st wave is whole class teaching)

So if her LSA is just helping her with what the class is doing - that is not an intervention.

Whereas if the LSA takes her out to do a phonics program or a numeracy program - that is a 3rd wave intervention.

There are many many different interventions available.... For example I like Bearing Away for children who need a lot of extra support learning to read. A LSA can sit with her in the corridoor for 10 minutes a day and go through the programme with her...

So absolutely no reason at all why your school can't do it.

What they have said to you is absolutely appalling.

You have to complain to the Board of Governors initially.

While they may be useless, they may also be unaware of what is going on in the school, as they will be dependent on getting much of their feedback from the head/teachers. Who will obviously be saying they are putting the provision in place.

Link to national strategies intervention, tells you all about 'waves'.

nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/node/156792

what do her ieps say?

are you involved with the target setting? do they use smart targets?

is she meeting her targets?

they should be detailing on the ipe how she will be meeting these targets - what help they will give her - so you could ask for the programme etc to be recorded there, as well as 1-1 help etc.

then go to the chair of governors or the governor responsible for sn - sometimes it is the same person - and discuss.

what have they said about differentiation at parent's evenings? where does she sit in relation to national average etc?

are you going to be looking for a special setting for juniors/ secondary? (sorry, don't know how old she is)

Thanks everyone for the advice.

Madwoman what are smart targets. She is generally set four quite basic targets on her IEP such as to ask questions in small group. To be able to tell the time of half past quarter past and quarter to. All very basic for her and quite achievable. Not really the driven targets we are looking for. We are not involved in her setting her targets we just sign to say we have seen/agree with them. I'm going to send it back saying that we don't agree that these should be her targets and that they should include harder targets. I'm hoping that this way some effort will be put into them. She generally meets her targets.

She is going to seniors next year and have just found out she didn't get SN place which is fine as we she wants to stay in mainstream but we would have like to have the choice, will appeal it but don't hold out much hope and not going to fight too hard as it would be against her wishes.

She sits below the national average on 3s but is actually much more capable but has a spiky profile.

Thanks again for all the help any more advice gladly taken.

'smart' targets - loads on tinternet.
specific
measurable
attainable/ achievable
relevant
time limited

'relevant' would capture your difficulty with them, i think. if she can already meet the targets, then they are not, by definition, a 'target' to work towards...

To get the evidence you need to writea letter to the school and request a written reply detailing reason why they wont provide this, then you have evidence. It so annoys me that people are willing to just leave sn kids and not help them progress, my ds in in an EIB he got the place without statement, his pre school adament he would be fine in ms school, anyway i cannot fault the base he is in, and if he had just been left to go to ms he would have been getting no where. I say make a complaint its the only way these things will get better over time. Good luck x