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Need advice please...

3 replies

ojsma · 21/02/2011 14:11

Hi everyone, I'm new, don't have all the acronyms yet, sorry if this gets long winded! :)
My son is 6 and had ASD. He goes to the local mainstream primary school in our village. He doesn't offer up much info about school when asked but when he tells us things spontaneously, usually he's pretty accurate.
Having dinner one Friday evening about 3 weeks into new term (Sept '10) he told me that his LS had smacked him.......Knowing that if I asked lots of questions he would then start to get confused, I kept things simple and in as calm a way as possible asked him "why?". He said " because she was cross up to me".When I got up from the table he demonstrated on the back of my leg how she had smacked him. Having given it much thoughtand discussion with family I went to speak to the Head Teacher about it on the Tuesday......All swept under the carpet, that wouldn't happen, he probably just misinterpreted something, blah, blah, blah. The teacher was instructed to call me to clear the air, honestly when I came off the phone my gut told me that something had happened. No more said about the matter.
He has just recovered from an illness that kept him off school for nearly 3 weeks, on his return to school he was told he would have to attend LS to catch up work, which is fair enough, but he is terrified. His vocal and motor ticks became almost out of control and in his words he said he was frightened of this woman. We met her on the way into school one morning last week and he hid so she wouldn't see him!
I called the school before half term and told them I didn't want them to force him into her class or to be with her if he didn't want to....I have now been summoned to see Head Teacher tomorrow morning. Does anyone know if I have the right as a parent to say that I don't want him with her? How should I deal with the Head Teacher if she wants to force the issue?

OP posts:
amberlight · 21/02/2011 14:23

Primary schools have very clear guidelines on what to do if there is an allegation against someone working with a child.

I would ask to see their Policy on child protection. Then if it doesn't match what they have done, ask them why they haven't followed it.

A head teacher cannot force any child to be in contact with someone who may have harmed that child. If there is any suggestion that they are going to force the issue, you are within your rights to ask to see the Governor in charge of child protection urgently and bring it to their attention, or contact the Local Council education section and ask to speak to whoever is in charge of child protection there. All you want is a fair hearing on this, after all.

Spinkle · 21/02/2011 14:35

I hope this is not the case.

I cannot imagine a Head not investigating this thoroughly, however.

My son went through similar with the childminder's kid (also in his class at school) This is much more serious though.

He clearly does not get along very well with this person. His anxiety could lead into all sorts of issues for you. You may need to ask he has support from someone else until the issue has been sorted/investigated.

I don't think that the Head can force your lad to be with someone he so demonstrably is afraid of. I'd be blunt with the Head - you've been fobbed off before, after all.

I know my son (also 6, ASD) has very vivid dreams. It takes a while to unscramble bad dreams from reality. I'm not for one minute suggesting he is lying btw. At the same time, he has a lot of echolalia (delayed) and it never lies.

ojsma · 21/02/2011 14:37

Hm, yes we saw his paediatrician in Dec 10 and caught her up with all that had been going on, she was horrified that the correct procedures hadn't been followed. Many parents complain about this particular teacher, I wonder, if so many have done as I have and asked for their children to be withdrawn from working with her, why has something not been done about her?

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