Looks like the fight is beginning

[theDudesmummy]

I knew this was coming but am feeling unaccountably put out and stressed by it!

LEA are in the process of assessing for statement. DS (3 and a half) is on a home ABA programme and they are well aware of that. I wrote to them last week alerting them to the fact that we are going to be wanting to ask for ABA school. I knew full well they were not just going to roll over at this stage and so "ok, go on then"! But their response letter today is really perverse and got my goat (as my late granny would have said).

Their reasoning for why "the Panel did not agree" to the request that he be assessed for the ABA school is that he is making progress and his concentration has "vastly improved", so they are of the view that "a behaviour managament programme was not neceassary" to meet his needs.

WTAF? So because he is doing well on the ABA programme, this means he does not need it? This seems like saying to a diabetic on insulin, well you are doing so well on the medication that you don't need it so we will stop it.

It is also the case that while he certainly has demonstrably improved on the prgramme, he is still totally non-verbal, not toilet trained, has an attention span of a couple of minutes, is demand avoidant and has challenging behaviours including headbanging. Does that really sound like a child who does not need behaviour management? Grrrr.

I phoned IPSEA and the lady was extremely helpful. Helped me calm down a bit! She told me not to start firing off letters to them right now but to wait for the propsed statement and then focus on Part II and Part IIIB, making sure all the needs and required provision were in there before I focused on the school issue. So I sahll do that then (although fingers are itching over the keyboard to write and tell them what i think of their erverse logic!).

Sorry it's a bit long, just needed to offload a bit!

[lougle]

If it's in Part 3 they have to provide it. Bear in mind though that unless it's quantified you can't hold them to an amount if hours. Check that they aren't looking to name your home program until school age then another provision after.

[theDudesmummy]

It is in Part 3, but I will certainly be looking for them to quantify what "intensive" means.