SN places at playclubs - who pays for the extra support needed?

[Milliways]

Please do not take this as inflammatory - am genuinely interested.

My kids (NT) used to attend local play club. Today I saw a friend dropping off her autistic son before getting bus to work. I asked if they gave him the 1:1 that he gets at school and she said it had been a real battle. They said couldn't take him (spaces, money etc). She demanded to see their policies, which included SN children, and told them that their policies forbade them excluding her son because of SN, so she got a place & they had to provide extra helper. Once he had been once, is now entitled to priority book, and gets a place for all school hols.

She works every day, son is SN and has lots of problems at school so not an easy one to fit into playclub, so can also see why she needs to battle to get him a place somewhere.

My question: Who pays for the extra help. Are prices inflated for everyone to cover this? This is a council club, but would this apply to private (autistic child at private playclub my 2 attended). Also, if this child gets priority place EVERY holiday, what about other SN children. They surely can't provide for every child who's parents insist if they need 1:1 (a NT child has to book VERY early to get a place with most going to priority re-bookers).

How do all you working parents of SN children get holiday cover - or does it stop you working?

A close friend of mine with a DS son has been told the holiday club on their forign holiday will only take her son if she stays with him! He attends mainstream school and copes well at holiday clubs with minimal support. She needs this holiday more than most - are they likely to let him try and stay on his own?

I would be very surprised if the prices were put up to cover the cost of the 1:1 support. My ds1 (5.5yrs) and ds2 (3yrs) both attended a playscheme last summer. Ds1 (autistic) didn't have 1:1 as he had been before and was able to cope. Ds2 (also autistic) had funding for extra help from the Early Years Inclusion Service. The playscheme actually benefitted from this because ds2 didn't need someone with him all the time so the helper had time to assist other children too if needed.

They got a place booked early because ds2's portage worker knew the people who ran the playscheme and so knew when they were starting to take bookings. The playscheme also got extra funding for help for 2 other children with SN.

It can be extremely difficult to arrange for someone to look after a child with SN. It's even more difficult when you have two. The summer playscheme lasted for just 2 hrs a day for 2 weeks and no child was allowed to attend for the full 5 mornings each week as the demand for places was so high. It's one reason why I'm a SAHM.

I would hope (though it's by no guaranteed unfortunately) that your friend's son would get help depending on his level of need. My ds1 was due to start Yr1 with no 1:1 so it was felt that he could cope without help. He had also attended the playscheme the previous year and so knew what to expect. Ds2 needed someone to keep an eye on him just in case he got angry/upset and so funding was awarded on that basis.

FioFio, my kids are NT, and we paid £20per day each at sports centre (with 10% discount if paid in full well in advance), but that was 2 years ago now, and included swimming etc every day.

The child that attended their playclub used to cause a few problems (hit mine etc) but settled in after a few days & had regular meetings with staff & parents, but he didn't have a specific 1:1, was just part of the numbers on a try it out basis (privately run club - NOT council).

We have a local scheme that provides workers (1:1's) to allow children with SN to attend mainstream playshemes. Numbers are limited and it comes under the umbrella of inclusion.

Completely unsuitable for children with needs as great as my son's, but all the money locally seems to be going into inclusion. If your child can't be included you're stuffed basically as far as holiday care/after-school care is concerned.

last summer I looked into getting my dd into a mainstream school playscheme. Although they were really keen to have her we had to find the 1-1 she needs by we I mean me and our sw. funding for the 1-1 was then going to be paid for by some fund not the playscheme, In the end she couldn't go as we couldn't find the 1-1 so I am now looking at a sn playscheme. If all goes well we will most likely pay half with ss.
I hope this helps. I Have found it really hard to find a playscheme for sn yet there are loads of things for nt kids.

Yeah it's impossible - the summer holidays have been hanging over me since the end of last summer! I'm a single mum so have to work and have 2 dds, one with severe SNs. She can't walk, although can crawl about and get into things she's not meant to, so needs a lot of supervision. So a standard playscheme is just not suitable for her even in the unlikely event a 1:1 would be provided. Am still hoping to fund some sort of care at home using direct payments (not getting very far with it!) - can't afford to pay anyone directly myself.

Caroline5, are there no SN playschemes in your area? THat's what keeps me going every hol, DS has 2 days this week. Its council-run and funded, very secure with lots of experienced staff. I always feel when hols come up as one of the principles when DS's school was founded (by parents) was to have short hols. So he only has 3 weeks off in the summer. I'm always dreading them upping it as the school becomes more conventionally run with more teachers rather than therapists, aagh.

dd's school does have one for a couple of weeks of the holiday, but it's only from 10am -1pm and I think the youngest ones like dd are only allowed to go to it for one of the weeks. So not really that helpful for me unfortunately, although at least it does exist!

Have you asked Soc Svs? OUrs have three separate playcentres for 2 for SN only and 1 mixed. Mind you, I didn't let DS go there until he was nearly 9 just used to get people in to help at home and take him out, ideal use for DPs.

Davros snap I didn't let my dd go to a playscheme until she was (she did go to one at her school when she was younger) I just couldn't believe either they or her would be able to cope!!

missed out the 9