DS starting reception with EHCP. Concerned that school will say they can’t meet his needs.

[PuffHorner]

DS has a speech delay and is waiting an ASD diagnosis. He uses a PECS book. He got his EHCP which states mainstream, but on application for mainstream reception I had one school reject, and the school he’s now placed with had reservations about taking him.

My concern is that I’ll now have a constant battle to keep his mainstream place with the school and I wondered if anyone had experience of this?
His speech therapist seemed quite shocked that mainstream tried to reject him.
I’ve spend the summer trying to ensure he can do things like : use the toilet independently, dress independently. He learns a lot by rote, so knows numbers and letters. He cannot express his needs easily and has a very quiet voice. He wants to play with other children, but can’t converse with them (instead uses gesture or copies their play). He will sit for carpet times and is not disruptive.
His main issues will be : his inability to communicate, that he needs a lot of prompting (to eat, to use the toilet, to dress/undress etc).
He is getting 20hrs a week, but the school said they need to fund this themselves and a lot of that time will be needed for admin and paperwork.

Have you seen the final EHCP? Does it state what the additional funding is?

The funding is for 20 hours a week in his final EHCP @openupmyeagereyes

I wondered if it gave a £value. Schools have to fund the first £6k out of their SEND budget so anything above that is additional income.

If the school is named in the finalised EHCP they must admit. They can’t just refuse.

However, it doesn’t sound like the EHCP is good enough. Section F needs to be detailed, specified and quantified. What exactly does section F state about the 20 hours a week? What is detailed, specified and quantified in F must be provided. If the school need more funding they should approach the LA. It is the LA who is ultimately responsible for ensuring the SEP in EHCPs is provided. EHCPs can be fully funded, but LAs won’t do that unless forced and often say the school has to fund the first £6k out of the notional budget (which is rarely £6k anyway).

When was the EHCP finalised? Are you still within the appeal window?

@OvertakenByLego the school is now named in section F. I was accidentally tagged into an email exchange between school and LA and I know school are fighting for more funding.

The appeal window has now passed.
TBH I was getting pretty frustrated with trying to communicate with case worker/school and thought it best that I let things be. He has a school place and that was my ultimate aim.

My concern is that the school now has a negative view of his placement before he even sets foot in the door and will be looking for reasons to say mainstream is not right for him - and look for reasons to justify this, rather than look for all the positives in him. I personally feel that mainstream IS right with support. The LA/speech therapist/Ed Psych/his preschool SEND all stated this too. It was only when I did his school application that it was questioned by the school (and he was rejected by another school).
Can a school just say “no we can’t teach him”?

The school shouldn’t be named in F. It should be named in I. If the school is named in section I they must admit. They can be named against their will. They can’t just refuse to have DS.

What exactly does F state about the 20 hours? It sounds like F needs to be improved, so you should consider requesting an early review.

@OvertakenByLego

Sorry - yes I meant section I.
I think they have been named against their will.

I shall check to see what it states exactly.
Does a school have the power to ‘exclude’ him though, if they feel they don’t have the resources to meet his needs? Despite what the LA thinks? Or could they persuade the LA to exclude him?

The school can only lawfully exclude for disciplinary reasons, and they must adhere to the statutory exclusion guidance and follow due process. You would be able to challenge any exclusion. Some schools try to informally exclude, but that is unlawful. If the school try that you should refuse to collect unless DS is formally excluded.

Thank you @OvertakenByLego