What chance does DS have of getting the school he needs?

[Sahkoora]

We sent DS's proposed statement back about 3 weeks ago (with lots of changes) and requested the school that we feel would be best for him.

Ds is 5, has ASD, and we've been through hell this term with his current mainstream school, culminating in the Head saying DS was to be sent to a PRU or permanently excluded, and that he would not recommend that another ms school take DS.

Despite the vile, bullying and insensitive way the Head handled the situation, DH and I were kind of coming to the conclusion ourselves that ms was not suitable for DS. School had (half-heartedly) implemented everything that appeared on the statement and it had made no difference. DS simply can't cope with all the noise, the multitude of kids, and with the pressure to conform.

In the interim, we visited a really lovely state ss and also an indie ss that was just as nice. To cut a long story short, we requested that the state ss be named on the statement.

But, the state SS has no places until Sept 2014. The area's other options are another state SS that does not take kids under the age of 8, or the indie SS, which seems unlikely because of the cost.

At the moment, DS is out of school because of extreme anxiety. I doubt very much we will have an easy time getting him back into school although he loved the state ss we have named and didn't want to leave after our visit.

We are undergoing a nailbiting wait to see what will happen next. I would just like to hear others' experiences really. Just because we (and his former school) think that ms is not a suitable option, will that mean that the LA will just look at SS? Who ultimately makes this decision?

I don't want to go through this all again, I feel sending DS back to a ms would be setting him up to fail. Added to which I've heard from other parents in the area that ASD kids being kicked out of ms school is by no means unusual round here. DS (and the rest of the family) cannot cope with this again.

Thanks for any info or thoughts anyone has.

don't know if this will happen for your ds but when my dd was in ss, the year group became full and they had a request for another placement for a child in dd year, instead of saying it's full they moved dd up a year to make room for another child, but my dd was older so i'm not sure if it's possible, don't give up hope,

Provided that the mainstream school is very firm that it cannot meet his needs, you need to put a lot of pressure on the council about the fact that ds is entitled to full time education and therefore he needs to be in a school that can meet his needs. I think they will want to get him into the maintained special school if they possibly can, possibly by giving them some extra money to cover extra staff costs, but you need to make sure they're not allowed to waste time on this.

Thank you. His current ms is very firm about the fact that they, nor any other ms, will be able to meet his needs. The Head flatly refused to consider a managed move to another school in the area as DS is SUCH a health and safety risk. It is true that they have seen no progress in the past academic year. DS can't cope and they can't control him with the methods they are willing to use.

We had a TAC meeting a few weeks ago and it seemed as though all the professionals involved were agreeing that ms was failing, though the representative from the LA who was there would not be drawn on anything as DS only had the proposed statement at that point so technically, he couldn't comment.

He did pull us aside after the meeting to say that there would be nothing stopping us bringing DS back into ms in a few years if maturity and the right guidance helped him to manage his behaviour a bit more. A good sign? It's driving me mad!

hold your nerve, and don't compromise for a short term gain now ffs. It's a marathon and you have light at the end of the tunnel now.

It's rare that a MS school actually supports what you know to be best for your child - in this case a SS that CAN meet your child's needs. It's also quite rare for provision such as this to be found in the state sector. September 2014 is not so far away in the grand scheme of things and you know there is deffo a place available then.

Worst case scenario - LA pay for home tuition until a place becomes available & your child gets the opportunity to heal from the damage mainstream has done while he waits. You also get the opportunity to do some intensive work at home re his sensory issues. Do you have a good OT on board? I was VERY suprised that actually there are things that can be done to help DS in this area (not cure, just ease his suffering iykwim).

Best Case scenario - office politics and jiggery pokery by the bean counters releases fund so that your child can start at the SS in say January, allowing you to possibly keep your job and DS to get stuck into the business of making friends and being happy at school asap.

I've just moved 500 miles as there was NO suitable state provision in my old LA, and watching DS be set up to fail time after time after time was destroying me from the inside out. It's disgusting that given the prevalence of hidden neurological disorders such as SPD and ASD that the educational system has not yet developed to cater for these children so we are left to choose the least worst option as parents.

Thanks Boc, that's very helpful. I guess what I was wondering is whether the LA can force us to send him to a MS even if we and old MS don't think it's suitable?

So sorry you've had to move all that way, but I can totally understand why. "Watching DS be set up to fail time after time after time was destroying me from the inside out" is a perfect description of how I was feeling while DS was at MS.

He's currently out of school and home tuition is apparently being set up (though no sign of it yet thanks to half term and half-arsed dicktwattery from LA and school on the subject) so we shall wait to see what happens and whether he will be waiting a year or a term or whatever.

Thanks again.

I was in a similar position as in beng told school was full but then a place did become available. I don't think I have yet viewed a special school that hasn't said they are full! I have 2 boys with asd and a DH who was in the forces so moved a few times so been through the change of schools quite a bit. It's a games really of holding your nerve. If you feel this school is the best place for your son the dint settle for anything less even if they may mean a period of having home teaching. It will be worth it in the end

Thank you!

I will stand firm, then, even if it means waiting until next Sept. I have no faith in our local ms schools at all. Time after time, parent after parent, all I hear is that kids didn't start thriving until they went to ss round here.

I think being kicked out of school and having no other suitable provision has made DS something of an emergency. Also have an appointment with our local MP at the end of the month, so I'm hoping that might put a bit of pressure on!

DS has been on a ridiculously reduced timetable (less than 6hrs a week) throughout reception, so they need to get their finger out if they want it to look as though he has had any sort of education.

Just had a response from the LA to my letter about the proposed statement.

They say:

"The LA will consider your request for DS's placement in MLD provision asap and if appropriate, will consult the school(s) for a placement ..."

If appropriate? Who decides this? What if they don't think it's appropriate? Will I have any comeback?

Sorry, realising I am panicking here, but I need some advice from those who have been here before me. Has anyone been refused an ss placement when they requested one on the statement?

having this dialogue currently with my new LA. No words of wisdom - just sending you lashings of mutual support.

Thank you. Good luck to you, boc. Here's hoping we both get the right schools.

Good luck and stay firm! Most SS are full, there is not enough of them. I am trying to get my ds to start reception next year at our local SS - and was first told it's too late to
apply this September because his statement is not finalised!

School claim it's LA's pokicy, LA say it's school policy...
After I kicked up a fuss suddenly it's not such a strict
policy - but I made it clear I will go to Tribunal
again if I have to.

Who decides if it's suitable? In our LA ( and suspect most)
big shot from LA chats to Head from school and choose the most pushy/ annoying parent and then call it 'Panel decided'.

Our SS has 180 applications a year and 12 places available!! That's why I'm trying to get him into reception, most parents at this stage try MS and believe LA that SS is too full to take their child on. Yes, but it's even fuller in Years 2,3,4 when many kids can't cope with MS anymore..

Thanks babiki. We had a TAC meeting a few weeks ago where the Casework Manager for the Statutory Assessment Service came. We made it completely clear (as did DS's current MS school) that we don't think DS will cope in MS.

Like you, I want to get in there now before the influx of kids who have found they can't cope makes our chances even worse.

I am hoping the fact that DS has been unable to cope with even the tiniest of timetables and the fact that he has been near-as-dammit expelled at five will mean they can't tell us MS is suitable.

The fact that we bullied them into providing home tuition will hopefully mean we are something of an emergency, too.

If they DID name an MS on the statement, we could refuse, yes? And take it to tribunal?

Yes, of course, you could appeal. I think that you have a good chance though, in your current situation.

Thank you, that makes me hopeful. This waiting is driving me a wee bit nuts, as you may be able to tell. Thanks everyone for the hand holding and for sharing your experiences, it really does help.