Need some help with writing email please?

[claw2]

Ds was assessed by SALT recently, well she provided 6 weeks worth of input, for inappropriate targets set by her and then said no need for direct input and school would monitor. I emailed her some time ago asking how monitoring would help and suggested if she provided some guidance school and I would work on ds's difficulties. However, she has failed to reply.

So email I have written so far to ds's counsellor and SALT.

Dear Ms X and Ms X,

I think it would be very helpful to establish which professional will/will not be responsible for providing input for which of ds's needs. I feel it extremely important for ds to be able to maintain progress, to have a collaborated and holistic approach, as many of ds's needs interconnect and have a knock on effect and need to be seen as whole.

Ds's main needs are as follows:-

•Self harm
•Anxiety
•Low self esteem
•Eating
•sensory difficulties
•motor skills difficulties
•Higher level language difficulties
•Difficulties generalising/transferring skills
•Difficulties with social interaction/communication
•inflexible thinking and literal understanding of language
•Delayed play skills
•Difficulties understanding and/or communicating his feelings, emotions, needs and wants
•Difficulties understanding the feelings or motivations of others

For example CAMHS have already established that a sense of confusion from his environment, particularly around his understanding of unstructured social situations is contributing to his anxiety and self harm and inability to eat. I should imagine that his understanding of social interaction isn't helped by his higher level language difficulties, inflexible thinking, delayed play skills etc and his difficulties interconnect and have a knock on effect.

Ds has recently had an OT assessment and I have filled out a sensory processing questionnaire and I assume OT will cover her area of expertise ie sensory and motor skills. I understand from Mrs Counsellor that she will focus on ds's self harm. I understand from Ms SALT that she will not be having any direct input.

I am now stuck on how to finish this email??

I'm assuming that you want Ms SALT to continue to monitor? How about...

I understand from Ms SALT that she will not be having any direct input and expects the school to monitor his needs and progress in this area.

I would like to have this in writing please, together with a plan for the following -

• a named individual at the school who will be doing the monitoring;
• their training and suitability for the role;
• how they will liaise with Ms SALT;
• frequency of communication;
• how they will liaise with other professionals involved in his care;
• a detailed description of progress Ms SALT would like to see together with expected timelines; and
• remedial action if this is not achieved.

I would also like the plan signed off by Ms SALT's supervisor with an assurance that this constitutes best practice.

I also intend to call a Team Around the Child meeting prior to this arrangement to enable all the professionals involved in my son's care to agree this plan.

I look forward to a swift response.

Yours blah blah blah
Mrs Claw

I was going to suggest that too. Unfortunately/Fortunately this would be the appropriate time for instigating a TAC.

Sorry, I meant about the TAC thing.

The other stuff I never thought of but think Bluebird's suggestions are spot on.

Ms SALT isn't even suggesting that she monitors, she is suggesting that school monitor!

Thank you Blue very good idea, I did ask before about how this would be done and suggested a plan to her. She has ignored.

She seems a bit out of her depth, however, its someone who school employ and I think she needs to answer my questions. I have already asked school if they know who is responsible for meeting which need and if they didn't could I contact professionals to find out, as I didn't want to tread on anyones toes and they have said they would rather I did as its 'more efficient'.

So I assume school would like to know what they are supposed to be doing too!

Your ending will be perfect and should kick SALT/school into gear.

Not sure about the remedial action bit, but I guess that depends on how frustrated you are/how far you think you'll get without it.

It's just that I never ever threaten anything I might not want to follow through and because no-one ever seems to believe my threats anyway.

Thanks I also asked exactly what difficulties she wants school to monitor. I left off remedial action as I do not want direct input, not from this SALT anyhow. She obviously doesn't have knowledge/experience of ASD and just doesn't 'get it'.

Hopefully if she still doesn't respond to my email, then school will need to take it up with her, seen as they are employing her.

Oh she has replied, asking to meet with me tomorrow.

This is going to be difficult, my mum is in hospital, advanced stages of cancer, I had planned to visit her. I had taken today off from visiting to send emails and try and sort out ds and get some answers.

Why cant these bloody people just answer the questions in writing.

So tell her that you want her reply in writing as you are visiting the hospital and have other things on your mind so want to make sure you don't forget anything.

Thanks Star, email sent.

I asked

1. Exactly which areas of difficulty will school be monitoring?
2. Who will be doing the monitoring in school?
3. What level of training or expertise will be needed to enable this?
4. How will they monitor?
5. How often will they monitor?
6. How will they liaise with you?
7. Frequency of communication?
8. How should they liaise with other professionals involved in Jacob's care?
9. A description of progress you would expect to see in areas of difficulty, with expected timelines?

She has replied

1. She will be doing the monitoring.

1. Monitoring will involve her working directly with CT and TA and counsellor and OT.

1. Liaison can be on a weekly basis with TA to outline concerns and activities to do with ds in the week.

1. Ds will attend one half termly review session with her to review progress and work on higher level language and transferring his problem solving skills to different settings.

1. It is difficult to make a judgement of progress as the skills (transferring problem solving to wider environments) we are talking about are often situational and should be addressed with discussion when they arise. We know that ds has the ability to problem solve in a structured 1:1 session, however difficulty is evident in the wider environment. This means that it is extremely difficult to measure. Ds should have the opportunity to engage in online problem solving with an LSA when problems arise. I can advise the LSA’s on ways to do this and resources to use.

Much better than what she previously stated, no direct input from her. School will monitor and let me know if any problems arise.

I will have a proper think about it later, just in rush now and thought I would let you guys see quickly before I have to go out and see what you think.

Glad you got a result!

I often find that a list of questions that shows you're someone to be taken seriously tends to concentrate the minds of people dealing with you.

Now let's hope words become actions.

I am not happy with the reply to number 5. It conflicts with ds's IEP the idea being when ds gets anxious he is to give a number, as he often isn't able to discuss it, and then be given strategies to help him cope if number is high. IF discussion is involved ds will not report that he is anxious or incidents THATS the problem!

So in a 1:1 situation with SALT or anyone else ds is good at thinking of solutions. However he doesn't use this solution in real life situations. IF CT and TA involve lots of long winded discussions, ds will just stop reporting incidents or when he is feeling stressed.

and hey presto ds isnt reporting feeling anxious in school, intervention has been a success!!

Maybe I could ask for the measure of progress to be ds reporting less incidents at home?

Or am I just nit picking now?

No. What you said makes a lot of sense. Have you ever explained that in writing? I think it would be a good idea.

In the meantime:

www.staggeringbeauty.com/

Lol @staggering, kept me amused for a while!

I have explained just that in writing to SALT, told her plan was great, just one concern blah, blah, etc, etc.

Apart from that it just seems a bit silly to me, even IF he could tell an adult. Ds can discuss solution in structured 1:1 with adult, but cannot transfer skill to real life situation...I know what we will do...discuss solution in structured 1:1 with adult. Circles spin to mind!