Aba therapy , how can my baby get this through local authority funding , is this possible?

[Rumaysa1]

Please help!
My son is 20 months not talking or interacting after many visits to the Gp I have finally been referred to have his hearing checked, Salt assessment and an assessment for autism however I called the centre today and was informed there is a 10-12 month waiting period for the assessment!
So I'm soooo confused as to what to do, I have contacted Peach who informed me that I could start ABA therapy with my son a few months before the assessment to find out if the therapy aids him in any way and if it does it would be evidence that could be submitted once the assessment is completed and a care plan is put together.
I'm not sure if I should start the therapy before the assessment , as I am aware the local authority does not like to fund ABA therapy and may say well let's explore other options first , I was advised to keep film recordings of my son from now onwards and after the 3 months therapy to highlight progress.

Please help I am just reading so many things on line , I don't know what would be the best move.

I am in tower hamlets london does anyone know if they are good when it comes to Aba funding or backing or has anyone received funding for aba in towerhamlets.

Stressed mum x

Sounds like we're saying much the same about the likelihood of getting any substantial external help without a huge fight .

Aha. Have found a parent support group in the OPs area. Other parents are often a good place to start...

Many thanks for all your advice and comments, I will definatly take it on board.
I have an app to see the manager at my local portage Wednesday, and I will be seeing the child psychologist at my local childrens center Monday for some advice and just some feedback form her observations, he is also getting his hearing checked Tuesday , I would prefer finding out there is a problem with his hearing which can be fixed, but if I'm honest with myself I doubt it is that.
I will also start doing my research on autism and aba therapy and maybe some training so I can do some with him at home while we wait for the assessment.
I will be writing to the ASD assessment centre to complain regarding the wait however wanted to ask if I can refer to any regulations or time frames they would not be meeting by making my son wait 10-12 months just to make my letter have more weight.
Thanks again x

rum - I wouldn't write to the assessment centre but try to get the address for complaints against your NHS Trust from your local PALS team. When I wrote my complaint I referred to the National Autism Plan and the NICE guidelines which give recommendations of about 16 weeks for assessment. I do have the exact figures but not on this device. It is important to argue that early intervention is the key to a more successful outcome for your DS and that a 10 month delay could have a negative effect on his educational future. The NAP has lots of evidence on this and how your DS will be disadvantaged amongst his non-disabled peers and will not have equality in his opportunities. With the new EHCP I would also write that it is now necessary for the health services to work with the Local Authority and that a delay in diagnosis will have demonstrable impact on your DS' ability to have support in nursery and school.

It sounds like you have a good plan of action and that you are prepared to be very pushy which is great.

'The problem with applying for a EHCP now? It is because, as you point out, they will say no'

They Probably will say no, but they'll say no later too.

Personally I'd rather go to tribunal with my evidence with no made up evidence from the setting to contradict mine, now.

If going for ABA that will be several appeals. May as we'll crack on and get used to the system.

Hiya all thank you so very much for all your advice and info, I am taking everything on board.

I will be writing to complain about the waiting time for the ASD assessment however wanted to ask if I can mention any regulation or timeframe they may be breaching to strengthen my letter of complaint. They did say they don't see any child before 2 my son is two in December and will be over 2 and half by the time he is seen.

I will be reading and training on aba to try help him at home in the mean time.

Also this is off topic however has anyone used any vitamins that have helped their child, I have been reading a lot bout balance behaviour , however when I google there are so many miracle cures claimng to be the best. It would be nice to hear from someone with experience .
Any recommendations I can look further into.

Many thanks again xx

Any child can benefit from being in optimal health when you need them to learn. And children who are in sub-omptimal health are less tolerant to demands and less focussed.

There is evidence that our diet in this country is poor for vit D in the winter, selenium and Omega 3.

I think it is common sense in many ways that ALL children benefit from supplementation where they might be lacking.

Having said all of that, I don't supplement consistently. I don't believe that many products have decent bioavailability and vitamins need to work together or require the absence of one to work best if they did.

The ones that appear to do better at being absorbed and used by the body cost quite a bit.

If you're on benefits, the health visitor will know how to get vouchers for vitamin drops. If you aren't, ask your local chemist, or maybe the GP can prescribe him abidec or dalivit drops

Best source of omega3 is real fish

If you want to go on a PECS Workshop you can get funding from the pyramid educational trusy. They will pay for most of it you would have to pay a small amount just so they know you are really up for it and that you are going to turn up.

You can apply via email which is on their website. Have a look at the locations at www.pecs.com - there is one in West London in November.

Hope that helps

That would be trust not trusy!

Thanks for the info will defiantly contact them. Thanks

JJXM so sorry to hear all you have been through and the difficulties LEA are giving you, thank you for all you advice will defiantly be using all the references for my letter of complaint for assessment! :) so sad we have to fight to get our children what they need ,
Have you tried any vitamins... Behaviour balance I think there is a lot bout it on mums net ... I don't think you can try it before the age of two so will wait till December x

Have you heard of Greenspan Floortime Approach? I would highly recommend it, especially for such a young child as it's very play based and there is an online course for parents to learn to use it.

I agree that Floortime is great, but because it doesn't take data on progress it isn't as 'refined' as ABA which does. That just means that you can't ensure that every hour spent with the child is optimally used to ensure maximum outcomes.

Of course someone trained in Floortime doing ABA would be an incredible combination. Sadly I think there are next to no people (well one person, who DS was extremely lucky to have working with him for 6 months).

The closest thing to this combination is the Early Start Denver Model, which is play-based ABA for toddlers. (though all ABA should be play-based if it is the appropriate stage for the child and produces the most optimal outcomes, which your data should be able to demonstrate if necessary).

Nothing can ensure every hour is optimally used to give maximum outcomes (that sounds like we're talking about a business or machines rather than children to me). As an autistic adult with autistic children, that description of ABA doesn't sound very positive to me - that sounds like a lot of pressure on both a facilitator and the child and would send me running. And I did with my own after one thought her plan would give maximum results even when it didn't match anyone's else priorities (why she thought spending weeks playing games to reinforce gender stereotypes so my son could decide if a cartoon character was a he or she on sight was more important then understanding open questions, I'll never know).

Floortime is relationship focused rather then result/compliance focused. It comes from the idea that autistic children, just like alltistic children, learn and learn best through play and close connections to those around them and from starting from the autistic person's point of view and needs rather than our ability to behave like alltistics. Floortimes comes from the ideal that therapy should only be for the autistic person and should only be the icing of experiences. Floortime also has the backing of several adult autistic community groups, which ABA does not. Many adult autistics who were had ABA therapy have come out against it and have refused it for their own children and this has been ignored by professionals much like the data that autistic adults diagnosed as kids have a far higher rate of mental health problem and that PTSD has become co-morbid with autism. I'm almost grateful my parents chose to ignore me instead.

Floortime can also be done by parents, across the neurodiversity spectrum, is easily done by most parents and the course for parents is a far more accessible option.

Interesting view. Why isn't ABA relationship focused? Why isn't floortime compliance focussed?

Surely it is entirely dependent on what you are trying to teach (as it would be in any classroom or learning environment).

Why would you not want your efforts at teaching to provide maximum results towards the outcome? Wouldn't you prefer to put 1 hour into teaching a skill rather than 6? Wouldn't it also be better for the child, so they could use that other 5 hours for other things/skill learning?

ABA isn't a 'therapy'. It is the science of learning and it is present in many mainstream schools in the UK, but more strikingly in schools in countries with far higher academic and mental health attainment. Good knows what those adults you speak of who have 'come out against it' went through, but bad practice isn't the fault of science. There are adults who also speak highly of it, though as a developing 'science' they tend to be mostly the younger generation with more recent experiences iirc. Though I wouldn't consider Temple Grandin as a younger person particularly.

The simple steps programme is very accessible to parents. Funding is not, but that is because of the slow mechanisms of Local Authorities and their sluggish movement from SEN as a babysitting service to an educational one. The also do not fund Floortime, so I'm not entirely sure what you mean by it being more accessible tbh.

Another vote here for ABA, which has always been totally fun and play-based for my boy. It gets highest ranking in most studies against other interventions - eg on pages like Research Autism

Actually two adult autists have recently commented publicly and favourably on ABA - Temple Grandin and Alex Lowery

ABA has been misused as a tool to try to 'normalise' or 'cure' dc with ASD. Just like the various alternative nutritional therapies have been. There are salesmen who take advantage of terrified parents and their vulnerable children, and at times, this can result in real cruelty.

Some providers charge shed-loads for hyped up (but very ordinary) vitamins, for hyped up (but very ordinary) dietary advice, and some are doing the same for hyped up (but very ordinary) ABA. There are also dodgy providers in each of those fields -including ABA- who peddle the myth that early treatment can cure ASD and give people the 'normal' dc they originally wanted. In my view, that is no better than physically abusing a dc.

All of that is drivel. Multivitamins help some dc a bit, but you can get them free on the NHS. A healthy diet helps most dc a bit (and yes, if gluten or dairy seems to make your dc unwell, dump it- with free NHS dietician help). ABA cannot, will not, and never has cured ASD. It can be very helpful as a fast, reliable way of teaching essential skills to a dc- including the important basics like paying attention, communicating, and coping with daily routines.

I suppose once in a blue moon, having been taught life, social and communication skills superbly, could theoretically tip a dc into the 'not-quite diagnosable' category. But almost always, excellent teaching just means a dc with ASD has more skills, less impairments, more easily managed behaviour and a better chance of benefitting from the opportunities readily available to other dc. Which isn't a miracle, but is an outcome well worth having.

Regardless of education autistic adults taught in the 50-early 80s have very little positive things to say about it.

The educational model for ALL children was for a high level of compliance, rote learning, punishments. They were the values at the time and ABA taught them best because the way that it was analysed and broken down into steps to ensure efficiency and consistency so that the learner was clear of expectations and able to achieve them. ABA had the best evidence-base for achieving these values.

Values are different now. Self-esteem, relationships, interaction skills, team work, anxiety-reduction, advocating for oneself, independence. They underpin our education model for ALL children, and, because the way that these skills are analysed and broken down into steps to ensure efficiency and constancy, the learner is clear of expectations and able to achieve them. ABA has the best evidence base for achieving these values.

Again, ABA isn't a therapy. It isn't a 'thing'. It is just a science to ensure that what the child is learning is done so at the fastest pace possible for them, freeing up time for them to either learn additional life-enhancing skills or for leisure time. It also frees up the teacher to reach more children, or have their own leisure time.

Have to say, I do really like floor time. Making sure that the adult and the dc have fun together, and learn to really like each other, is a superb basis for building skills. The suggestion for regular videoing of play sessions is one way to show progress over time, and in theory would let you spot which approaches are working better than others. And it does at least have the beginnings of an evidence base- unlike the unfocused mishmash of low expectations and ludicrously expensive patronising brand-new-shiny sensory room cr*p that parents are expected to be grateful for.

But, as said above, neither floor time nor aba are readily available. Early stage Denver model seems a cross between the two. Being able to do picking and choosing between rival but plausible alternatives with some evidence of effectiveness- just a dream in the UK.