EHCP - Naming Schools

[theamberspyglass]

I was hoping to get perspectives on our situation. We are in the draft EHCP stage for my son who is starting Reception in Sep 2023. He is on the ASD pathway, has language delay and faces struggles when environment gets busy at his pre-school.

The small mainstream school with an ASD resource base that we think is ideal for my son is in another borough (B). Our Borough A has consulted with this school which said that all spaces in the resource base have now been allocated. I know that we can potentially appeal this, but I wonder how difficult would that be given that it is not in our Borough. It also made me doubt pursuing this appeal as the school itself is quite far from home (30 min drive).

Our alternative is the local mainstream school nearest to us--it appears to be very inclusive and Head Teacher and SenCo are very supportive. (This is also the school that my son has been allocated to prior to getting the EHCP). However, as the school has 60 children/per year and no resource base, I fear that the busy environment (as compared to the small school with a resource base) will just cause struggles for my son later on.

So my thoughts are whether to:
a) pursue the appeal for a space in the resource base in the smaller school in the other borough;
b) take a chance with the local mainstream school (with all the benefits of being local) and wait to see if it works out for my son (with a view to pursue the other school in the next EHCP review if it doesn't)?

Our Borough itself no longer have schools with ASD resource base as it's setting up a new special school for ASD children (starting at Year 1) but I fear that my son is unlikely to get a place next year as his EP report suggests 'mainstream' setting.

Hoping to get some perspectives from your experiences. Thanks!

If you want the ARP I would appeal. The ARP being in another LA doesn’t prevent it being in the EHCP and it doesn’t change appealing for it. Some ARPs will only take those with a diagnosis, but I take it this isn’t a problem with that specific ARP?

@ThomasWasTortured thanks for the reply. Yes, the ARP admits those on the pathway.

If we follow option b (try the local school first) and my son does struggle, I get the impression than it's more difficult to switch schools (i.e. apply/appeal for the ARP space next year) because WE now have to prove that the chosen mainstream school does not meet needs. Whereas if we appeal now, it is the school ARP that needs to demonstrate why they can't accept my son. Is that understanding correct?

Not quite, the legal threshold would be the same regardless of whether you appealed for it now or pursued it after a potentially failed MS placement.

Trying and failing in MS could support your appeal as you would have more evidence to support needing an ARP. On the other hand, if the MS isn’t supportive of a move to an ARP they could make it harder (although still not impossible) by claiming DS is ‘fine’ in MS.

BTW, unless wholly independent a school can be named even if they object.

With regards to the transport side of things, 30mins isn't too bad TBH. You can apply for transport from the LA.

With regards to the resource base being 'full' - don't let that put you off if you feel it's the best setting for your DS.
I know of resource bases who have taken extra students when their parents have won on appeal.
I would also say that it's common for DC to join resource bases throughout primary rather than from reception up so whatever decision you make now it doesn't have to be final for the next seven years.

One of the issues you're going to have is time. If your DS is due to start in September and the LA don't name the base then you're going to have to appeal. I believe that DC who are due to move up to another setting are given priority but even so, I can't see this being agreed before September.

You could sound out his nursery to see if they would be prepared to let him stay while the appeal is being heard. DC don't have to start school until the term after they turn 5 so that could buy you some time.

Playing devil's advocate, my DS went to a 2-form mainstream primary with fulltime 1 to 2 support (he has ASD) and it actually worked pretty well for him. I was so worried beforehand and felt the school was too big. Actually, having a 2-form intake means there's more likely to be other neurodiverse DC there, the school is bigger so may have more experience, more equipment, a wider range of activities etc.
If you've met with the Senco and SLT and they're supportive that can make all the difference between a placement working or not.

For my DS, I felt it was more important to fight for a resource base at secondary as that's a whole different ball game - of course you're a long way off that!

Do make sure that you're happy with the content in Section F (this is the legally enforceable bit). Make sure everything is quantified and specified. This is so important, whatever setting he goes to.
Ipsea has some good info if you've not seen it:

https://www.ipsea.org.uk/what-an-ehc-plan-contains

Hold out for the ARP via appeal now. 30 mins is ok for the right school.

@Toomanyminifigs thank for your perspective. Yes, if we do appeal and it goes to tribunal, it's unlikely that we can settle it before Sep.

My son is 5 in July (we delayed his Reception start already) so he can't stay in Nursery anymore. It looks like our realistic choice for now is to try the mainstream local school and see if it works. (Senco and HT appear to be supportive so far).

It's good to note that 2 form school worked for your son and that there are actually advantages to a bigger school. In your experience, what were the most critical success factors? Is it the right TA, having a sensory/quiet room, etc?

We have looked at IPSEA and we are also happy with Section F; i guess we're more worried about it's execution in a busy environment.

@SimilarToAClockShape thanks for your reply. If we do hold out and appeal and wait for tribunal, it's my understanding that while waiting, my son will not have a school allocated (i.e., we can't use the school that he was allocated to as per normal admissions)?

The most important part is ensuring F is detailed, specified and quantified. Then the provision must be provided and can be enforced if necessary. If the wording is woolly and vague with wording such as “access to”, “would benefit from”, “opportunities for”, “access to”, “regular”, “or equivalent”… it isn’t worth the paper it is written on and isn’t enforceable.

The finalised EHCP is still legally binding whilst appealing, so the placement would be the MS named in section I (if that is what the LA named in the finalised EHCP). Although sometimes parents decide not to send their DC whilst appealing.

My DS had some extra visits to his primary before he started. His nursery support worker took him a couple of times so they could meet with the reception team/his key workers and share tips. They took him after school had finished so the team had time to meet and also so the classroom was a nice quiet space.

It may not always be possible to meet with the key workers beforehand if they're recruiting or they know people are leaving etc which can make it tricky.

They made him a transition book that we looked at a few times over the summer with photos of the key staff, the classroom, toilets, playground etc.

Although having said that, I think there's also a balance. My DS is incredibly anxious and I've learnt that going on about things too much in advance actually makes things worse. It's such a balancing act!

We were given the option of giving DS a longer transition into reception - ie having half days for the whole first term. In the end I actually decided against that. I felt for my DS, it would then be harder to get him to do full days as he wouldn't understand the 'change' (if you see what I mean). But I don't think there's a right or wrong way of doing it.

I also met with his support worker/teacher/Senco to explain what his 'triggers' were and the best way to cope with his meltdowns. In my Ds's case it was to remove him to a quite space and let him calm down by himself.

We also agreed on having a daily contact book so if he's had a bad night or had a current obsession I could let them know and vice versa. He would bring it home in his book bag. Obviously in the early days I imagine you would have the chance to actually talk to the staff but sometimes it's not always possible. It's also good to have things documented.

My DS found drop offs very hard at first as there were so many DC/parents so the school allowed me to bring him through a different entrance and hand him over directly to his key worker. I think we did that for the first two years. This is what I mean about a school being supportive. It's often small adjustments that can make all the difference.

I'll try and think of anything else.

Whatever setting we chose for our DC, it's always a bit of a leap of faith. I do remember the sleepless nights I had before my DS started primary school. I had several panic attacks and almost went for home schooling but in the end his primary experience was much better than I could have hoped for.

@Toomanyminifigs thank you so much. We will use those practical advice.
I attended the parents' evening at my son's allocated MS school (likely to be named by LA) and i have no doubt that while HT and Senco are lovely and supportive, the school uses hallways for focused work and there is only one 'nurture' room--again, I had a sinking feeling it's not the right setting for my son (even with the best of intentions).

@ThomasWasTortured thanks for the advice. We talked to our case worker about possible appeal to our desired MS school with the resource base (the one that's full, in another LA) and she said that they (our LA) "can challenge the MS setting but not the specialist resource provision".
I noted that the resource base is part of the mainstream school and not a separate listed unit. So what do our LA mean? Do they mean that if we win the appeal--we can go to the desired MS school but possibly still not access the resource base?

On another point, if we go to tribunal, who are we fighting? Because in our case, it's the other LA (where the resource base is) that decides who gets into the base and they understandably would prioritize their own local children?

Don’t listen to what the LA tell you. They will tell you what they want you to know and their version of the law. ARPs can be forced to admit and you can appeal for an ARP. For the majority of ARPs, this one included, as the ARP isn’t a separate registered placement the school is named in I and the ARP support is detailed in F.

Any appeal is against the LA you live in.

it's the other LA (where the resource base is) that decides who gets into the base

No, it isn’t. It is your LA who has the final say (not counting SENDIST), not the LA the school is in.