Requesting La assessment...help needed please

[Madprest]

I have wrote on here before and had great advice. I am writing a request for assessment today to LA. I really could do with some help as to what to write in the section (I believe that my dd's special educational needs are as follows-).
My daughter is in YR 5 and her test grades at the beginning of yr5 are as follows- Reading-2B, Writing-2B and Maths 2A. These grades are the same as start of YR 4, which was given to me by HT at meeting. They have refused her going on SA+ and keep repeating that she isn't bad enough to go on SA+ or to be assessed. They are trying to make me feel that I am imagining this. I know that some advice I have received before was to move school. I can't do this because I don't think she could cope with moving and her younger brother is settled in the school. Also i think they should be dealing with this. I am getting concerned because she is noticing that she is behind her peers. Every week she is in tears about how she struggles compared to others. Please can someone help me put the letter together to send to LA. I appreciate any advice.
Kind Regards,
Margaret

The key words you need to use are adequate progress. This is the term used in the SEN COP.

So if she's on the same sublevels this year that she was last year, she has clearly failed to make adequate progress last year.

She is also 2 years behind where she should be.

I would list her levels for every year yo have them (you must have them for Y2) as well, to demonstrate that she has never made adequate progress.

SEN COP

School request for statutory assessment

6:70 For a very few pupils the help given by schools through Action Plus may not be sufficient to enable the pupil to make adequate progress. It will then be necessary for the school, in consultation with the parents and any external agencies already involved, to consider whether to ask the LEA to initiate a statutory assessment.

6:71 Where a request for a statutory assessment is made to an LEA, the pupil will have demonstrated significant cause for concern. The LEA will seek evidence from the school that any action implemented for the pupil has continued for a reasonable period of time without success and that alternatives have been tried.

The LEA will need information about the pupil?s progress over time, and will also need clear documentation in relation to the child?s special educational needs and any action taken to deal with those needs, including any resources or special arrangements put in place. This information might in some cases include reports or written advice from external agencies. The evidence that the LEA will examine in deciding whether to make a statutory assessment is described in Chapter Seven. The criteria, which LEAs may adopt in deciding whether to issue a statement for a particular child, are set out in Chapter Eight. Regular liaison between the LEA and schools should ensure that there is clarity about the information required by the Authority when an assessment is requested.

will do indigo, i have all levels from reception (given to me last year by HT). Should i list them all or just from YR 2. Thanks again for your advice it's really appreciated.

Firstly - I don't know what I'm talking about :) I applied for a statement under this criteria and got turned down.

Secondly, I'd list all the levels I had. The LEA will get them again from the HT, but list them anyway,

Thirdly, you also have to state that despite being given as much support by school as possible using their current resources - she still didn't make adequate progress

So make out like school have done loads. Having a TA assigned to her whole table counts. Everything counts.

Your case is that school can't do anymore for your DD without a statement (more resources). Not that the school is rubbish or anything like that.

After meeting last year she got a teaching assistant once a week and one to one with her leaxia program. Now this year they have taken all that away. Meeting with this years class teacher I asked where DD was compared to rest of her peers and she would not give me a straight answer. She said she had 3 groups and DD was in the bottom group and she had flagged her up as UA (under achieving). This morning i told her i will be going to LA myself and she said that SENCO don't think she is bad enough for SA+ nor to be assessed.

Ok, well in terms of applying for a statement that all sounds good.

You can claim that they have tried lots of things with your DD, and they haven't worked.

(If she wasn't on any interventions you'd be in a much weaker position IYSWIM)

You don't need me to tell you that you probably won't get a statement. But equally there is probably no harm in applying.

I dithered for a long time about whether to apply or not. Applied. And got turned down.

Did get a better IEP out of it at the end though......

I chose not to appeal, because I wasn't convinced that a statement was what my DD needed.

If your DD has seen any outside agencies whatsoever e.g developmental paed, SALT, OT then she should be on School Action plus already.

Her levels are those of a Y2 pupil.

Do apply for the statement asap and ignore the naysayers. A child can go straight to statement without having to be on either school action or school action plus beforehand.

I can understand your reasons for not changing schools but even with a statement in place would this lot want to help her?. They have and are failing her badly. They have certainly failed her so far by saying she is not "bad enough" to be assessed (a complete falsehood) or to be placed on SA plus. My guess too is that they will want her secondary school to do the job that they themselves should have done far earlier.

You are your child's best - and only - advocate here. They are not interested in fighting her corner so you have to do this for her.

Thanks for replies all it's always very much appreciated. Attila I will be applying, letter posted in the morning. I totally agree they are failing her and want secondary to do it. Nice to be reassured. I just fell for all the garbage, anyway onwards I go. Can't undo the past. I deserved a kick up the bum.