Statutory assessment - they said yes!

[streakybacon]

Just heard today that my LA has agreed to carry out statutory assessment on ds (14) .

I'm astonished. He's been home educated for four years, SA was repeatedly refused while he was at school and afterwards we were frequently told that as home educators we weren't allowed access to LA services (including SA ), but my PP lady has found out that they're going ahead.

I expect I'll be back on here asking advice on the final statement. Might as well get it right now we've got agreement.

Great news streaky

What does he want to happen?

It's really for belt-and-braces reasons with the changes in SEN law. My MP (sits on Education Committee) reckons it's going to be built on statements and has advised me to get in while we still can. IPSEA have advised the same, and a few others. In truth, ds should have had a statement several times over, but hey ho. I want to be sure we're covered whatever the new legislation, plus if I ever get hit by a bus and can't HE any more, I want to know he will be properly supported if he has to go back to school.

There will be no support, in practice, while we HE, because what ds needs (he has AS and ADHD) isn't available here. But a nominal statement (and they have been issued before, I've checked) would document his history of need in case it's needed in the future. That's the plan.

We're looking at college options. So far none of them need a statement but I want to be prepared, just in case. Ds is Mathys-Sciencey so that's his direction. .

That's interesting - DS2(6) is going through the lets see if SLCD are primary or secondary to ASD at Action+ level. LEA EP said we should know if they need to do SA by the end of the academic year. DS1(12) has AS with SpLD. Do you think this would be too late? When is the cut-off? Is that to start SA or to finish the whole process?

The new legislation will be in place Sept 14, but nobody is sure what it will include just yet. It's being thrashed out as we speak.

In the meantime, I'm applying for SA and I've got Connexions gathering info towards a Learning Difficulties Assessment (139a) so that there's a record of ds's SN history on file. We have a four year gap with very little official documentation (well, that would be because everybody told us we could have no support, I guess) so I'm in the process of filling it.

Are your children in school or HE?