Aquired brain injury

[alibobins]

Ds1 is 9 and last year he was in picu with pneumococcal meningitis during which they found a skull base defect which required extensive brain surgery and removal of some damaged areas.
This has changed my happy go lucky child. He is extremely clumsy, unpredictable, struggling both physically and emotionally.
He has got good support from the tadworth children's trust and his paed at the hospital but not so much at school
Before all this happened ds was quite bright and settled at school and although he is struggling school are not too concerned as in their words he is holding his own.
We have a meeting at school in Monday with the Senco and Tadworth brain injury support but what kind of things should I be asking. This is all new to me so feel a bit lost.

School refused to get the educational phycologist involved saying ds seems to be coping okay.
He has got a strong friendship group that seem to accept the changes in him. He has put on lots of weight and walks with a limp. The hospital consultant suggests dyspraxia but we are in the middle of neuropsychology assessment.
He struggles with short term memory and school don't seem supportive it's just so hard.

Fwiw, I think the school are being very unfair to your Ds

Remember you know him better than anyone so stand your ground with them.

I agree with polter and Independent Ed Psych report has just given us a great deal of insight into Dd3 for not a huge amount of money.

Good luck

Funding private wouldn't be a problem I'll see what Monday brings.

It sounds like you've had a terribly traumatic time, for all of you. I'm presuming they think that the basal skull defect allowed the meningitis better access?

School need to treat him as an entirely new child presenting with his current difficulties, instead of seeing him as 'poor 'james' who was so very poorly...isn't he doing well to be back at school full-time'. It's doing him a disservice and preventing him from getting help he needs.

Lougle do u know me?
He had a frontal encephalocele which they believed allowed the infection better access he also had encephalitis and was quite poorly

No, alibobins, sorry...used to be a neurosurgical theatres nurse.

It does sound like he had a real run in.

You need to be a bit assertive and tell them that the illness he experienced has had a very negative affect on his education, and that while he may seem to be coping during school hours, he is clearly using all of his coping mechanisms to survive the school day, because he is expressing it outside of school with you.

Make it clear that you are not going away and that he needs support to progress as he should be. Tell them that you're not satisfied that 'holding his own' is good enough.

Thank you for your advice that face on my previous post was meant to be a :( face I thought you knew who I was as you put his name :)
I find it really hard to push for extra help as its hard myself to accept the changes.
Tonight we've sat down and tried to do his homework which ended up with ds having a meltdown that lasted well over an hour :( I wish school could see that side of him.
I'm going to take in a notebook and at least look confident.

Hi Ali I think the fact that no one can know what your Ds is able to do or not do should be an important talking point for you and the SENCO tomorrow. I would telk her that you are considering getting an independent ed psych assessment and that the results of that will need to be used to provide the correct support for your son.

I would also ask for him to be placed on the special needs register even if it is only in the short term while everyone gets a good understanding of what his capabilities are.

As far as homework goes I would be doing half and hour and if he cant complete it during that time then they have given him too much.

Make some notes before you go so you dont forget what you wanted to say.

Good luck

Oh no! It was a total fluke. I just pulled a name out of a hat.

Can you discreetly video him? My DD2 is being assessed for SN and school weren't taking too seriously my claims of her anxiety. Then I managed to use my mobile phone to video her when she was practicing a song for a school club, and she went into a flat spin about it.

Since then, they've been putting support in, realising that she's not being lazy but actually shutting down at school, referring to CAMHS, etc.

Ha ha lougle good choice of name :)
I have wrote down some bullet points and have got the letter from his consultant that states he feels it would beneficial to get an Ed phsyc involved and have got the support of the brain injury support worker.
Hopefully tomorrow will get the ball rolling x

Have you contacted the brain injury trust? They publish a free leaflet and dvd fir schools called 'could do better' whichoutlines all of the longer terms implications of an acquired brain injury. This would be a good place to start, andthey will probably have someone who can give you some advice to help in what to ask for and expect ifrom school. 'coping' isn't really good enough, if he has insight into what he 'used' to be able to do and now can't.

childbraininjurytrust.org.uk/

The meeting went better than expected.
We now have a referral to salt, o/t, cahms and school are putting in place some support strategies.
Ilikemysleep I haven't seen that website I will have a look later :)

That's great, alibobins. One step at a time

Great news ali good luck

I'm happy things are happening but also a bit sad that's it's made all his difficulties real if that makes sense.

Of course, but you are now going to get him the support that he needs.

He is still your lovely boy no matter what