Still trying to get ds properly assigned to Action or Action Plus. Can u help?

[supermum98]

My ds has 3 x SPLD (year 6) and have obtained list of criteria for Action/Action Plus. PP say he should be on Action, EP says Action Plus and School say not on SEN register at all. It seems to all go on reading skills and he reads and comprehends well ie. above chronological age and SAT's should be 4c ish roughly. School say that he doesn't tick broad descriptors but I think he ticks 8 of the narrow descriptors boxes for SPLD. I am worried about him going into Secondary and his needs not being recognised. Furthermore, he is falling behind his peers I feel.

My understanding is that if there is an outside agency involved, then it should be school action plus and the child should have an IEP. It sounds from your OP like the EP s involved. They should be pushing and supporting the school to put appropriate support in place.

The only time I have known this not to be the case is a child I know who has some hearing loss and wears hearing aids. The teacher for hearing impaired children, plus the parents are both happy that the child is making great progress and at present, does not need any additional support or adaptations to the curriculum. As as result, he is at School action pus, but does not have and IEP. This position is reviewed every time the external teach comes in, or if the class teacher feels he is making less progress than expected.

Is the EP private or the LA one? If LA, then, yes, he should be on SA+ as there are outside agencies involved in advising the school. The EP is the plus. If private, that's more tricky. Have you considered requesting statutory assessment? Even if it's very unlikely it should focus the senco's mind a bit! You don't need permission to request it, have a look at IPSEA website for standard letters.

What do you want to be on School Action or School Action Plus FOR?

How do you get a school to put a child BACK on SA+ when outside involvement comes back into play? They took my DS2 off SA+ AND SA, despite his lvls still being either behind peer group (in some areas a long way), or at the very bottom for his year group despite being one of the oldest.

He now has SALT involved again, Physio, OT is on a waiting list for, AND he is under an orthopaedic consultant. SALT issues, social skills issues AND physical disabilities ALL causing issues, as is his medical needs with his chronic asthma.

Yet school are refusing to put him back on SA, much less SA+.

Can anyone find me the but of the SenCop that says that if he has outside involvement, he should be on SA+?

It's important as he needs physical aids in class, school to include his Physio into PE again (which stopped 2 years ago when they dropped him off SA+), they need to engage with me better about providing work home when his asthma is too bad for him to attend school, and they need to provide SALT and some social skills help.

None of which will be done without SA+ and IEP. I also want him assessed by the EP again.

(I am concerned about dyslexia for many, many reasons)

So, I need to find the relevant bit if the SenCop, and I can't find my paper copy which is daft as it's in a massive plastic file folder thingy!.

Need to get him back on SA+ ASAP, as he is currently in Y5, I know school are lying about his lvls and abilities like they did with DD (sane SenCo), and I need to be prepared for this with transition...

If he isn't on SA+ for the end of Y4, and half of Y5, I won't get anywhere with a SA application before I have to apply for Secondary for him.

TIA.

Excuse formatting, I'm too tired and the SEN CoP copies atrociously:

"School Action Plus
6:62 A request for help from external services is likely to follow a decision taken by the SENCO and colleagues, in consultation with parents, at a meeting to review the child?s IEP.
Schools should always consult specialists when they take action on behalf of a pupil
through School Action Plus. But the involvement of specialists need not be limited to such
pupils. Outside specialists can play an important part in the very early identification of
special educational needs and in advising schools on effective provision designed
to prevent the development of more significant needs. They can act as consultants and
be a source for in-service advice on learning and behaviour management strategies for
all teachers.

6:63 At School Action Plus external support services, both those provided by the LEA and by
outside agencies, will usually see the child, in school if that is appropriate and practicable,
so that they can advise subject and pastoral staff on new IEPs, with fresh targets and
accompanying strategies, provide more specialist assessments that can inform planning
and the measurement of a pupil?s progress, give advice on the use of new or specialist
strategies or materials, and in some cases provide support for particular activities.
The kinds of advice and support available to schools will vary according to local policies.

6:64 The triggers for School Action Plus could be that, despite receiving an individualised
programme and/or concentrated support, the pupil:
_ continues to make little or no progress in specific areas over a long period
_ continues working at National Curriculum levels substantially below that expected of
pupils of a similar age
_ continues to have difficulty in developing literacy and mathematics skills
_ has emotional or behavioural difficulties which substantially and regularly interfere with
their own learning or that of the class group, despite having an individualised
behaviour management programme
_ has sensory or physical needs, and requires additional specialist equipment or regular
advice or visits, providing direct intervention to the pupil or advice to the staff, by a
specialist service
_ has ongoing communication or interaction difficulties that impede the development
of social relationships and cause substantial barriers to learning.
6:65 Where schools seeks the help of external support services, those services will need to see
the pupil?s records in order to establish which strategies have already been employed and
which targets have been set and achieved. They can then advise on new and appropriate
targets for the pupil?s IEP and on accompanying strategies. They may also provide additional
specialist assessment that can inform planning and the measurement of a pupil?s progress.
6:66 The SENCO, link workers or subject specialists, and the literacy and numeracy
coordinators, together with the external specialists, should consider a range of different
teaching approaches and appropriate equipment and teaching materials, including the
use of information technology. The external specialist may act in an advisory capacity,
provide additional specialist assessment or be involved in teaching the pupil directly.
In some instances better management or alternative arrangements in school, based on
advice from health professionals, may considerably reduce the pupil?s special educational
needs.
6:67 The resulting IEP for the pupil will set out new strategies for supporting the pupil?s
progress. Although developed with the help of outside specialists, the strategies specified
in the IEP should usually be implemented, at least in part and as far as possible, in the
normal classroom setting. Hence delivery of the IEP will be the responsibility of subject
teachers.
6:68 If the SENCO and the external specialist consider that the information gathered about the pupil is insufficient, and that more detailed advice must be obtained from other outside
professionals, then the consent of the pupil?s parents must be sought.
6:69 The SENCO should note in the pupil?s records what further advice is being sought and the support to be provided for the pupil pending receipt of the advice. (pp. 71-72)

Thanks everyone. I had an LA EP done in year 5, which identified 1x SPLD with working memory. I requested the assessment and was told, because I requested it, it doesn't put him on Action Plus. I have just had a private EP assessment done as didn't feel the LA one had gone far enough and he identified a high order processing speed difficulty and writing speed deficit ie. 2 x further SPLD. School think he is on target to get a level 4, but I have just done some SAT's papers with him and marked them at level 3, which suggests to me the gap has widened, from his peers in the last few years. What I want at Secondary is careful tracking of his levels and recognition of his difficulties, which I think he will only get if he is on the SENS register, even then they won't do a lot, but it's something. We didn't get extra time in his SAT's as too late to apply, but so depressing as he is bright and what he attempts is good, but he only gets through 2/3 of the paper max in the allocated time.
I don't know if Action/Action Plus will continue under the Green paper plans do you?

I am still not clear what puts a child on Action, I think my ds is not falling far enough behind yet to warrant APlus, and the EP visit was just an assessment, with very few recommendations, so a one off/

Action plus just means an outside professional is needed for ongoing support - I'm not sure that a one off assessment is enough tbh.

In all honesty, SA+ means jack shit. It's just another label, doesn't give you any funding or rights to support.

If he needs an IEP and ongoing support, you need to be asking for that - not a meaningless label. Forget what theoretical list you what him to be on, decide what he needs, and then start fighting for that. It doesn't matter what it's called, as long as it meets his needs.

SpLD are very difficult to get sn support for. I would start by using the support sites for dyslexia/ whatever dx your ds has, and following their guidance for seeking in-school support.

In the secondaries I have worked in, there is no real difference to support available for SA and SA+ kids. If a TA is in the class to support a statemented child (or children) then they will know who the SA/ SA+ kids are too. I have only ever seen one teacher differentiate lessons or expectation for these children.

SA or SA+ label is meaningless. Focus on the actual support required.

Thanks alwayslate, good advice-maybe I'm approaching this from the wrong angle and what you are saying makes sense. Cheers.

Cheers Lougle. .