Taking DCs out of school for private assessments

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

I am planning to apply for a statement shortly for DS, who is 8 and has a diagnosis of AS plus coordination and speech difficulties. As part of the process I want to have some private assessments done (OT, SALT, possibly EP as well).

He currently receives NHS SALT and OT but I don't think these are adequate. However the NHS SALT (who he sees at school) has said that if we go private she would have to stop his NHS treatment, maybe no great loss but I would like to keep my options open. So, I could go private and just not tell her, but if I have to take him out of school they are going to know and may or may not stop prioritising him on the list for the NHS SALT (not quite sure how it works).

Can anyone suggest the best way to handle this? Does the NHS SALT have the right to take him off her list? Do the school (state) have to let you have time off for private assessments? I don't want to just take him off sick as he is pretty likely to tell his teacher where he has been anyway (he's a non stop talker). Thank you

I cant believe that you are not entitled to seek a second opinion surely? I went privately for some of my assessments and school knew where he was going. There was no problem.
My SALT is aware that I have also gone privately. And it looks as if I will be going for a private OT (public on is on maternity leave and post not filled in interim...I am not prepared to wait any longer).
Can you finagle the wording so that your private assessment is a second opinion or something?

I would simply write to the school and give them notice that he needs time off for an appointment with regard to his AS and leave it at that. The school don't need to know specifically what is being done and if he tells his teacher later on then he may not be clear that it was just a speech assessment. You are perfectly entitled to second opinions and anyway you are seeking assessment here, not therapy.

Just an aside to your main point, but if you can try and get the private EP report done in school if you can. If you are trying to use these reports to help backup re statementing it will be helpful to show these reports are realistic to the situation your DS is in at school and observation of him in his normal school setting is the best way to acheive this. School don't have to agree to let a private assessment be done there however, but if they are remotely interested in your child they should understand what you are trying to acheive. It took us a long time to get an EP in school for DD and we had already been through the SA process by the time she came in. You may do well to apply for SA now and get the ball rolling whilst booking this ahead. If you end up appealing at any point you will have plenty of time for assessments to be made anyway!

Don't be put off by bully SALT. She can sat what she likes but will look pretty silly when she is written into his statement.

Best strategy is to ignore her, but if you want to be bolshy you can refer her to her own professional code that states she should work in partnership with private professionals not throw her rattle out of the pram.

The statement process calls for a mandatory lea ep assessment, salt, ot, pead etc as relevant. These can vary significantly in quality so it may be as well to wait on the lea assessments before deciding to shell out - we all want to allocate our funds where we feel it will be most effective iykwim.

A competent professional is not gonna be threatened by another's input, at least for assessment. I can see why some might have an issue with conflicting therapy styles/advice but that's a while down the line. Their results should be pretty similar. Hell if I'm gonna ask anyone's permission to try and help my own child - that way lies purgatory!

A good indy EP in school with their agreement can be a godsend. My Senco had a good 2 hour chat alone with the lady I asked to go in and was very grateful for the help. She really helped us pull together & make sense of a lot of disparate info from a variety of sources that I just don't think would have happened otherwise, as our local experts seem to specialise in can kicking and tail chasing.

The senco has since used the advice given as a real springboard to getting DS what he needed so in the right cirumstances outside help and state education can work very well.

I'm planning either ait or sound therapy for the summer term and noone's being silly with me about it. Aiming to schedule sessions so DS doesn't miss what his teacher considers to be core lesson time (eg we'll use PE/music periods not english and maths iykwim).

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Thank you all for your thoughts. I think the SALT was trying to say that two different therapy approaches wouldn't be a good idea, but I am aware that it must be tempting to shift people off your list at the slightest excuse when resources are so tight.

To be fair to the school, the support they have given so far has been very good and I want to keep them onside, but we have reached the point where I think it needs to be much more specifically tailored to suit his needs, rather than just the general approaches they have used for other ASD children and the SALT sessions have been far too few and far between. I also want this to be written onto a statement now as we head towards thinking about secondary schooling (he is Yr3 now) as I know how long it can all take. I am sure I will be back with more questions as I get going with the process!

I think 'we have an appointment re his asd' is the way to go. Unless the school would write something for the private therapist, in which case being upfront about getting a second opinion should be fine.

The NHS OT etc can't strike him off for having had a second opinion done. Though they might worry about the possibility of regularly working at cross-purposes with someone else.

It is all a bit of a minefield. I am planning to speak to the SENCO next week and his teacher, together if possible and tell them that I am going to apply for a statement and take it from there when I see how they respond. In the meantime I am getting together information about the relevant private professionals. The school provided a great deal of information to the Paediatrician when he was being diagnosed, so hopefully they will stay supportive. I just don't want to inadvertently do anything that jeopardises his changes of getting the statement.