Local authority and school refusal

[Skylar123]

I have been told by a professional to contact our local authority with regard to my Ds school refusal which is now getting serious. Requesting they get involved. Any thoughts on what they may or may not be able to offer , is this a good idea? Has anyone else already done this? Thanks in advance for any possible replies.

Wet I'm not sure sch have witnessed it..I think he keeps his lunch time difficulties to himself. He's been telling me and I've been telling them. I have no idea if he licks things at sch, I guess he must do or must have done once during the 4 years he has been there.
He has a private dx of hfa. I'm guessing and it is only a guess as I am clueless that the multi disicplinary team at communications disorder clinic will pick up on sensory issues when he is assessed by them in may.
Sch did tell me to get Ds referred to be seen for possible dyspraxia I did this privately and they consultant told me yes but it is Comorbid to his autism. So bloody confusing all this. I think daphne keen specialises in asd, I nearly went to her for my private dx but cancelled in the end. The consultant I spoke to about dyspraxia told me not to pay for any other services as Ds will get the services he needs though nhs. Wouldnt it be however wise to get some more 'evidence' of difficulties sooner rather than later if I am apying for SA . I should be able to get Ds assessment done with OT (fine motor skills) within the appeal timeframe as he is being seen in April, hoping they will assess pretty much straight away. What do you think , shall I force another assessment I don't want to be seen as a manic who assesses her son all the time. It would be good to clarify the sensory stuff though.

Lol...Dla spending on crack cocaine...I may resort to that in the very near future haha

Have you shared your private HFA dx with school?

With the LA?

Do you plan to submit it with your application for SA?

My DS is 25. We've never seen an OT but then again, he doesn't have dyspraxia. Icacnnot imagine what an OT could do for DS's sensory issues. Tell him to wear headphones, to avoid busy places, to avoid bright lights - he does all of those things anyway. So what I'm saying is that i don't have any personal experience of OT so really can't say how they would help or whether or not you need an OT report for any potential appeal.

DS's hypersensivity issues have just been identified by Psychs, mentioned in their reports and we've just taken the plain commonsense approach of not exposing him to sensory stimulii. I've never really understood why you need an OT report for the school environment - I suppose that the EP address the psychological needs whereas the OT addresses the physocal needs - but that can't be right as sensory issues are psychological difficulties but created by a stimulus. Sorry - have not got a clue.

Yes school know about private dx , I haven't told LA, should I? The reports will be added to my SA application. I think I will save the money and pay for a good EP report for tribunal and also a good advocacy to support my case .
Have a nice day x

I know LAs all see school refusal as won't go rather than can't go but the term does not belong to them.

It is a term used by psychologists to describe all situations where a child refuses school and that can be for a whole variety of reasons including have a disability and not being supported.

If it is used, ask them to explain what them mean by it as it won't be what you mean.

On the other hand.... let's just refuse to accept the term and refuse to use it. I pefer the simple approach.

Skylar - yes, I'd submit the private dx report with the application

If there's any OT in your multi-disciplinary team, then ask if they can do a sensory profile. If there's no OT, then ask the lead professional if there can be. It's not a magic trick - just a formal way of recording and scoring what does become bleeding obvious once you've spotted it.