Lea decision to not assess

[Frenchplait]

I sent s/a request last week, and today I've had a letter to say no assessment. Is it possible/normal for the lea to reach a decision so quickly (under a week!)? No reason has been given, other than ds' needs can be met by the school

Thanks

I'm not sure but other than your letter was there any other supporting evidence? Hopefully someone more experienced wil be along soon.

Are the school supportive of your request for a statement?

Agree with Cats post above, was there good supporting evidence? If not then I would suggest making sure you have all these bits of paperwork available and contact them again to reconsider. If they say no then you have the right to appeal to tribunal to allow them to make a decision, but there will be a time limit of 2 months to get this appeal lodged from the original decision not to assess. Some areas seem to just say no to almost everyone who applies and see who persists and who they can get away with ignoring. If you believe your child needs a statement then keep going - can be a tough battle though and be prepared to fight all the way if necessary.

Thanks for the reply

School are fully supportive, and have helped a lot with the request.

I provided every prof report we've had, copies of ieps for the last 2 years, statement from the school etc..

I've tried to ring lea today to get more information, but nobody was available. I'm planning to try disagreement resolution first, and then to tribunal if no joy. I've contacted the local parent partnership who provide a facilitator service, so waiting to hear back from them.

Thanks for the words of encouragement I intend to fight to the bitter end.

Don't waste too much time on facilitation. They'll try to fob you off without a Statutory Assessment. Only support delivered via a Statement must be legally provided - whatever you agree without a Statement can be withdrawn at any time.

The way to get the LA to take you seriously is to lodge your appeal to ribunal - NOW!

Appeal their crass decision to not assess by using IPSEA's refusal to assess pack on their website which is www.ipsea.org.uk.

May I ask which county you reside in; I ask as others may have general experience of the county in question.

Parent Partnership can work very closely with the LEA in question so can therefore tow the party line i.e the LEAs on such matters. Would not actually bother with disagreement resolution.

Good point Attila. Lots of PP are in cahoots with the LAs - after all the LAs fund PPs

Thanks both, very useful.

I'm in Wales. I'd rather not be more specific after reading here about the stalking LEAs

Guess I'm going to have to become less reasonable.

Didn't realise pp was lea funded, I thought as a voluntary org it was independent. I've got a lot to learn...

You should be entitled to written reasons - England is covered by Education SEN Regulations 2001 which states this (section 12) - try and find out if similar in Wales. But in any event it is just good administrative practice to provide reasons so you should write back and ask for written reasons to be provided in 7 days

But don't delay the appeal though - the decision is designed to slow you down and meetings, mediation etc can all take place alongside an appeal, You can always withdraw an appeal, what you don't want to do is waste weeks being fobbed off in meetings and wish you had appealed earlier.

Has he been meeting his IEP targets & making progress with the support he currently has?
Most LEA's like to see evidence of a child not making progress with additional help from within the school before they will assess for a statment.
If it has been some time since his levels have been assessed an up to date assessment may be useful if it will show a widening gap between him & his peers even with school support & even if IEP targets are met.

Agree with other posters, get all your evidence together with a covering letter explaining how he needs additional support over & above in order to access the curriculum equal to his peers.
Get a copy of the SEN code of practice & use their terminology to convince them of the need to assess.

Agnes, thanks for the advice. I've found the SEN code of Practice for Wales and paragraph 7.69 states that the reasons for refusal to assess should be given.

I'm so glad I posted this here, I've learnt more than I have googling all day! Thank you all

Slacklucy, no, he has not met any targets, despite additional support. He's made little, if any, progress this year. Foolishly, I decided (against the advice of the school) to wait and see. I convinced myself that it was just a case of him needing to settle in school. I could kick myself, I really could.

Last IEP review was last month as well as EP assessment. EP report stated that he has a GCA of 73, so classed as having learning difficulties, I think.

I actually drafted my request letter without any guidance, and now reading the Code of Practice, my letter pretty much uses the terminology found in the document.

I hope they agree to assess. Please keep us posted.

Keep fighting Frenchplait, sometimes i'm sure they just say NO to start with & hope parents will accept without argument.

Thanks wet and slacklucy.

I've been busy today, 2 letters each to the lea and school. Guidance says a should have a reply within 15 days, is this working days?

I've also started my appeal application, and have a list of other evidence I want to submit. Although DS had a salt assessment during ASD investigation, I don't have a copy of the report, and I'm unsure if this report would be sufficient or if I need to get another S&L assessment. Any idea?

Sorry for all the questions, and thanks for helping out

Sounds like you are doing the right thing. It took me about a month to get my appeal together so it is good that you have started this already. You wouldn't want to have to rush it a week or so before the deadline. Good luck.

Well done for getting started on the appeal paperwork already. I would presume that the 15 days include weekends, I think it would specify working days if not.
Re the salt assessment, if you have the name of the salt, could you go back to them directly and ask for copy of their report or ask your gp's secretary to obtain a copy for you?