really sorry but could someone explain inlaymans terms what form I have just completed with school.

[ditavonteesed]

It is titled a common assesment framework. thanks :)

It's a CAF and a way of gathering information from all professionals and keeping it all tied together. You should be offered meetings if needed to discuss what you want for your child and put in a plan to get what's needed.

They can't refer you to any of the outside agencies (EP etc) without a CAF form - so what you've filled in is basically permission for them to refer you to someone else.....

thanks, I was feeling a bit worried.

They can refer using a single service request without filling out a whole CAF

so why would they fill in the whole form, is it standard practice or do they think there is a safegaurding issue? I have gone to them, initially just to see if anything is going on that I dotn know about and now I am worried that I have started some sort of ball rolling.

sorry just realised I have given no bakground at all here. dd recieving help for dyslexia and dsypraxia although not actually assesed, responding really well to the help and no further problems, except at home she has very bad tantrums that can last for an hour or more, over the last month these tantrums have become violent towards me, the last one involved dd trying to punch me in the face repeatedly and I donnt really know what to do. so I went to talk to school to see if there was anything going on there ethat I dont know about or if she was having any problems or if they see any of this behaviour when she is in school. They dont which is great. today I was asked to fill in the form which is all good and they were looking to access some extra help or support for me or dd I am not quite sure, it was only when I came away that I started feeling a bit odd aboou the whole thing and then when I got back I looked through the form and googled and all I could see was stuff about sfaegaurding children.

It's not usually a safeguarding thing. It is to assess holistically for a range of needs, and then each need is looked at and an agency assigned for assessment or provision. It is to flag you up to the different agencies and ensure that SOMEONE is responsible for addressing each need iyswim.

Sometimes the reality is that they just do it and it is sent to a whole bunch of agencies who do nothing but add you to their caseloads and ignore you, and then when you complain you are receiving no help look at you like this and say 'what are you talking about, - you've had a CAF and all these agencies are involved?'.

Sorry when I say it isn't usually a safeguarding thing, it IS always done when safeguarding comes up, but it isn't actually FOR safeguarding iyswim. It is to assess need and then try and match provision.

I'm not a fan of them myself but I have my reasons.

If you get offered a meeting, request the names, job description and where they are from of everyone who is going to attend. That way you are up to date with who is who and can chase them up separately if needs be :)

Dont ever sit back and wait for anything to happen. x

Hi. I think personally, it depends on your relationship with the school, & how helpful they have been in putting in support for your dc.
If, for eg, the school consistently say they see no probs. with your dd& then you explain how difficult things are at home just now, then, yes, you'd probably feel right to feel a bit uncomfortable after filling in the Form. This is because, in a way, it gives the school more ammunition to say all the problems are at home, are there Safeguarding issues?
But, if you have good relationship with school, & explain re home situation, then the assessment would probably flag up that you possibly need some Respite/extra Support for dd at home, & the most likely Agency to become involved would be Social Services.
Don't worry- the assessment is to provide the most appropriate support for you &dd.
My ds has Dyspraxia,(& HFA), & has frequent outbursts at home. He is not violent with us,(yet), but can lash out at his younger siblings, and can scream & shout for ages when upset/ stressed.
Dyspraxia makes dcs very tired, as it takes much longer to process information, follow instruction etc,& along with that, there is usually poor/low muscle tone, so just getting from A-B is far more tiring than for other dc.
Make sure your dd gets plenty of sleep, and plenty of time to relax after school-don't overload her with lots of After School Activities.
As an aside, if the school or any Agency asks you to fill in a form/assessment, always ask what it is for-how is it going to support your dd. And, if possible, take someone with you for support to meetings. Always ask for a copy of the Minutes, & send back any amendments you have. Always keep a copy of any communication you have with school/ other agency. HTH.

Pleeease don't worry about the form. I have to complete them with parents (i'm a senco) all the time because bloody bureaucracy means that you can't access extra help from the local authority without submitting this form to the support services. Most of the sections are irrelevant (it's a one size fits all approach from some crazy person somewhere) and I usually just fill in the cognition and learning type sections. I do think the form is extremely daunting if your child just needs a bit of extra help with reading. The sections on care and safeguarding are really for social services referrals (like I said one form for many things). I ALWAYS cross those empty boxes through to help parents feel more comfortable.

Just read some of the earlier comments - In my experience your form will NOT be circulated to many agencies. It will go to the learning support team ONLY. if it was going to anyone else they would tell you. there are of course complicated cases where many agencies are involved but in your case it sounds like learning support is the only team who get the referral. Good luck!

thanks for the replies everyone, I really appreciate it.