EHCP angst, advice, support, tips, get it off your chest.

[enterthedragon]

As the title suggests, if you need help or advice or just want to let off steam about the EHCP process feel free to get your thoughts down on here.

As usual we will all support each other and give whatever advice we can, and if we don't know the answers we'll try and find out for you or point you in the right direction.

I'll keep you posted enter today DS saw EP. I then met with her after she observed a lesson. The lesson was centered around one of DS 'special interests' and he catagorically told her that lessons are never like that! She did however more when asked to swap work with a friend he became confused (hardly a difficult request!) because it was something new and he didn't understand.
We discussed his anxiety, his current nightmares and feelings he can't communicate his feelings at school because last term when he was having meltdowns he was told he'd end up excluded if he carried on.
She asked if we'd had behaviour like this before. So I explained yes, he'd then started receiving increasing support through Sen support (was SA+) then and ended up attending nurture group alongside ta support, scribe and more during year 6 and had made a real impact, increased self esteem, motivation, academic progress, emotional wellbeing and ability to communicate more effectively with peers.

Basically response was - well he won't get that now as la don't think he meets criteria for assessment.

So clearly agenda was set to avoid the issues being of a level and when it appears they are at that level - game over goodnight.

She even said the 25 minutes a week ELSA he gets 1:1 is standard. I replied it maybe but that doesn't mean DS doesn't need more and it's about what he needs not fitting him into a box that avoids funding.

The assistant senco even stated DS doesn't have problems with reading comprehension - just inference. How the fuck is she an English teacher and senco if she can't even understand what reading comprehension is?

I'm afraid I can't help with your problem. I've not come that far through the process yet.

The EP saw my daughter in May at school and received the report today, no actual scores or assessments, 'was reluctant to complete any standardised assessments of her cognitive abilities' so just observations. No contact with us, so some information is inaccurate.

We are in about week 34 now of a conversion of statement to EHC plan.

youare, looks like school tried to manipulate the lesson to prove no difficulties.

She observed the lesson, but didn't do formal assessment?

Standard practice now seems to be to set the bar at the highest possible point for the lowest possible support.

Assistant SENCO sounds a shit clueless.

vjg, did you know about the assessment before it was done? You should have had the opportunity to meet with the EP, challenge the report if there are inaccuracies, if you are not involved then that is not co-production.

34 weeks also needs challenging, what is their excuse?

Just seen what the autocorrect has done. It has substituted bit for shit, usually it's the other way round and will not let me type even the mildest swear words [biggrin]

Ffs

Buffy I was under the impression that you can threaten JR at any time but tribunal only after final decisions

Could be wrong though

34 weeks is positively speedy in my la. I've just celebrated 93 weeks and counting for la to notify me they have his Statement..... Of course the sneaky bastards are now trying g to complete an AR and transfer to ECHP and completely strip him off his needs in the process And to top it all they now need "more time to investigate" the next stage of my complaint, won't send me an amended statement so I can appeal or JR and won't tell me if they intend to carry out a needs assessment. Obviously they have no intention. I thought it was just me whom my la hated. Then I discovered mn and now I realise I'm far from alone waving furiously at you all

Hi enter you might be right I'm not sure of anything anymore SENCO this morning fobbed me off completely earlier today re ds2 so I will write to her tonight and insist that I want to be part of the IEPs and that I definitely do want all help recorded. She feels recording that I have to take ds2 in to his classroom before the rest of the school is not 'extra help' as I provide it (I have to stay until 0845 when teacher opens door for rest of class) and he should be 'helped' to do it independently. He has to do it because he can't bear the noise and all the other kids being so close to him. And I was right about them fishing for information she wanted to talk about ds1 for ages I had great delight in informing her that whilst I have no knowledge of the ECHP process (yet) I have absolutely no doubt that ds2 will struggle to get a needs assessment but as long as we keep recording all the 'help' he requires also big the way then we are at least laying down evidence. I also pointed out that maybe he should be seen by an EP but she feels that won't be necessary until next year. I don't think I agree.....

Buffy I was under the impression that you can threaten JR at any time but tribunal only after final decisions

It depends on the decision. If it's a decision that you can appeal to the tribunal - e.g. refusal to assess, refusal to issue an EHCP, contents of EHCP, decision to cease to maintain - then that's the way to go. However there are lots of matters on which the tribunal has no jurisdiction, e.g. failure to meet time limits, failure to provide support in section F of the EHCP, refusal to provide transport etc, and if they are illegal or completely irrational you may be able to JR. Normally the time limit for JR is 3 months from the decision. However, in situations where the LA's failure is ongoing, e.g. failure to provide what is in the EHCP, then in effect the time limit starts again every day so there isn't in reality a time limit.

Omg Buffy, 93 weeks! Excuse for our 34 weeks? Just failure to reassess, time to get EP to see her and do -shit- report, general uselessness of LA staff, I could go on!

Enterthedragon, I have emailed him with my corrections. Some of it is just crap, lots of stating the obvious with provision and very vague.

Augusta that's encouraging news as it is ongoing and would keep being ongoing if the la had there way. I kinda knew about the 3 month rule but wasn't sure about something like my ds1 situation.
vjg13 its pretty bad isn't it - although I'm kinda hoping I have set the bar pretty high and surely no one can top that Maybe I will get some sort of prize or something.......

Also until I was brave enough to out myself on mn this pretty much summed up how I felt once it hit the 90 week mark

Would you consider Asperger's to be a cognition and Learning issue?

If the AS produces barriers to cognition and learning then yes. I'm not sure the dx alone can be used as an argument that dognition and learning is affected.

For example executive function difficulties with cause problems with organisation, meeting deadlines, communicating knowledge etc. Social communication difficulties will produce barriers to understanding some texts, inferring from text and learning in subjects where human POV is the basis for understanding and discussion.

is this helpful?

youare not entirely sure to be honest, how can we show that there may be a learning issue without an EP report?

You can't! Hence the ever decreasing circles we go in. And even then the EP will only write what the la wants them to. There is a lot of trying to word things as not academically at that level rather than Sen.

Do you have any academic records that show cognitive scores, reading/spelling ages, levels achieved that show an inconsistent progress?

No, not really, the only thing we have atm is NCL for the last few years. IMO school are seeing a repeat of the problems that arose in the previous placement but with a slightly different outcome, ie , ds struggles with a part of a lesson but instead of having a meltdown now disengages.

I'm not sure whether the problem is caused by a different teacher with a different way of teaching and ds being unable to cope with the change or whether ds is genuinely finding the work more difficult than the teacher anticipates but cannot explain why.

Off to work, will have a think about this and try to find a way of explaining it better.

Another question afraid,

If a draft EHCP is issued and you ask for amendments should the LA then issue an amended draft or can they then just go ahead and issue a final EHCP?

I don't know I'm afraid but didn't want to ignore post and have you think I'm not following this still.
I hope someone who knows replies soon

If they agree to the amendments then they should send you another draft so you can ensure they are in surely?

Well that's thought would happen

Hi enter youare vjg

I don't know either...

Your question about Aspergers I think cognitive and learning issues are part of Aspergers. Or can be. The disengagement could well be because of his Aspergers as in cognitive or sensory or change of routine but could also be because he just doesn't understand...

Keep plugging away enter eventually you will get a right of appeal and if nothing else this is all evidence surely?