TA Not qualified or working well with austic child

[MBMum]

hello,
My DD 4 has just started reception, has an EHCP, it doesnt state 1:1 but has a higher banding. The SENCO has assigned her a 1:2 TA to work with her and another child with VERY different needs.

I have never met her, not been formally introduced, not aware of how qualified she is to work with a child with my DD needs - shes a parent in the school with a child in another reception class. I am forbidden fromc immunicating with her about DD outside school - she never approaches me, never speaks to me and i have asked to meet her a few times and been ignored.

Begrudgingly they have started a communication book with me for daily updates - they are horrible and negative, 'DD doent sit still, doesnt like reading, doesnt listen doesnt focus, isnt happy' - really negative, unhelpful comments where i can clearly see this TA cannot engage my child. mi expect them to say things like 'she needed extra breaks, we tried xyz to engage her, etc' vs almost like blaming my child because a bunch of supposedly qualified adults couldnt get her to focus over an entire school day

my DD has had a 1:1 therapist coming to the house for over a year who has successfully managed to engage her, do phonics numbers etc because hse is qualified, learns how my child is and works on her strengths.

I am in the process of going to tribunal for the EHCP content with a set of great professionals i am paying for to assess her and actually have a document thats not only reflective of her needs but also with strategies iand provisions in place for her.

I want to hear from other parents thier experience with a bad TA and what they did or if its reasonable to ask for her to be changed, I will do so at tribunal by evidencing how unqualified she is.

any thoughts or similar experiences.

Have you contacted the schools SENDCO? They would be the first point of call. The TA does sound unsuitable for the job.

My son has just started school too and has a 1:1 TA. They talk to me twice a day, we also have an app we can communicate on and anything covered regarding any challenges are done in a considerate way, with emphasis on what the staff have to do to help rather than anything being my child's 'fault'.

I would also speak to the SENCO.

However, unfortunately, if the qualifications are not explicit in the EHCP, the TA does not have to have any specific qualifications.

Not discussing school outside of school is the correct procedure. Otherwise it blurs the relationship and boundaries.

I would say it’s the dream fodder for evidencing her need for ”good” support. You have the communication book (Nb photocopy it every Friday they tend to disappear) and you have the contrasting experience from your 1:1 therapist (ask them to write a note on each lesson if they will or a summing up of progress).

thank you all

I have many children whose friends have 1:1and their experiences are different, the EHCP states the staff working with her have to have experience working with children with XYZ needs to implement the strategies.

The school have not made a formal introduction to the TA or arranged a session where i can talk her through what works with us for my daughter as a sort of handover, i had to push 4 times to get them to accept to meet the therapist - and again i am doing it as she was a SENCO herself, she reads the feedback and is so shocked. When i copied in the head, they finally agreed to meet the therapist for 30mins and again i am doing this so when the therapist writes her reports, she can incorporate her observations into it.

they have only initiated a daily log cos i insisted on it. emails to the senco often go unanswered or ignored. shes a bit of a battle ax who even from day one started hinting that my DD belongs in a special school - despite independent OT/SLT and EP saying they thing mainstream would benefit her a lot more than a smaller setting as shes very social.

I suspect the senco will say - this is all the resources we have. it is so disappointing - yet she was more than happy to ask me to push for more funding at tribunal lol

an effective 1:1 can really shape a SENs child school experience and help them flourish.

the EHCP states the staff working with her have to have experience working with children with XYZ needs to implement the strategies.

This is quite vague and woolly. It would be a poor EHCP using that wording. What staff? The receptionist, cleaner? What experience? 10 mins, 1 day? What strategies? ‘Working with’ doesn’t mean 1:1 or even 1:2 or 1:10. It needs to be detailed, specified and quantified.

Lots of the problems you mention can be solved with improving the EHCP. Although you will need evidence to support the amendments you are proposing.

@EndlessLight this is why i am going to tribunal to have the content be specifics, provisions quantified and explicitly stated - all of this will be supported by independent SALT, EP, OT and therapist reports.

Yes, I appreciate you are appealing. I was just explaining the current situation as it is at the moment with the current EHCP being the one in force at the moment.

To be honest I would focus less on the TA. The language used in the handover appalling but they have obviously been put in a position which they cannot handle. That is the fault of the head, teacher , senco etc. Thr TA probably isn't qualified but I don't think you need to be , the TA supporting my daughter is very young but it great mainly because she is a kind person.

Most TAs are unqualified. Some are great at their jobs because they are good at forming relationships with children or because they are v kind, experienced or flexible. Getting a certain level of qualification written in won't help necessarily. It may also be that the school won't be able to recruit such a person.

 It sounds like the school in general is maybe not a good fit. You say they are resistant to talking to professionals etc. I would be looking at other schools. I would also consider specialist schools. My dd seemingly did well in mainstream for about two years in reception and year 1. This was because of a TA and senco who were always positive about having her. When they moved on the placement began to collapse. In retrospect I think she needed more than the school could provide. My dd also did really well with therapy and tuition at home but that is v different to a classroom environment.

Being unable to recruit is rarely an actual issue when LAs are faced with enforcement action because LAs know it is not a lawful excuse. Their duty under section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014 is an absolute duty as Hampshire were reminded of earlier this year.

I can tell you that schools certainly do find it difficult to recruit and this may well be dufficult especially if higher level qualifications are specified. I am also not sure what the qualifications would be?

In this case the OP doesn't think the ta is good enough. Putting a body in place would fulfill the legal duty. It wouldn't solve the problem. Finding someone with a qualification as a ta could be much harder mainly because the pay is pitiful.

Ultimately, it is the LA who is responsible for ensuring SEP detailed, specified and quantified in F is provided. Lack of funding or difficulties recruiting is often cited as a reason why provision detailed, specified and quantified in F can’t be provided, but when faced with enforcement action it is rarely an actual issue because LAs know their duty is an absolute duty and lack of funding, resources or staff are not lawful excuses for failure to adhere to their s42 duty. The LA's duty includes ensuring there is sufficient funding to actually provide the support. LAs can fund the role at a higher rate, potentially a much higher rate, which can attract more applicants, but they won’t do so unless forced.

The qualifications and training will depend on the child's individual needs. For example, they could include specific qualifications and training related to a child’s individual needs (such as DACPD51, DACRT51, AET tier 2, PDA Society’s PDA for Educators course, SCERTs…) &/or a more general teaching assistant course qualification (such as a level 5 HLTA course).

The problem is the pay OP, it's far too rubbish for a well qualified person (generally speaking) to consider the job. I think the problem you might have really though is that this TA just doesn't sound very nice. Just putting a list of negative things is awful - is the teacher aware?

I would arrange to speak to the teacher to discuss your concerns rather than the TA. Parents don't tend to have meetings with TAs IME because the responsibility lies with the class teacher rather than them. I would stick to the facts - that you're concerned she is writing very negative things about your child.

You will not win at tribunal on the basis that you don't like the TA and that sounds like the point where you are at the moment - because do you even know what qualifications she has? You can hardly say she is underqualified if you don't know what qualifications she has. You need to meet with the teacher and ask if the TA meets what is set out in your EHCP - have you even done that? What specifically are you asking for? What does 'qualified' mean to you?

I also think you need to slow down and look at the bigger picture - do you really want your child at this school? You don't like the TA, you don't like the SENDCO, do you like the teacher? Even the horrid TA is telling you that your DD isn't happy.

Personally I'd be checking out SEN schools where she might be happy and able to go at her pace rather than trying to make her fit into a class of 30 with a TA who can't say anything nice and the SENDCO doesn't think she belongs.

Alternatively it sounds like you have money for a lot of private assessments (I might be wrong) but maybe dd would be better off at a smaller Indy school where the teacher isn't run ragged by 30 kids with a huge variety of needs/abilities? Otherwise I think you are going to have to be realistic about what a mainstream state school can offer - but definitely speak to the teacher about all the negative comments as that is completely unacceptable.

I think that Jessie's advice above is spot on. I think the gap between what is possible and what should happen legally and what is achievable is quite wide.

There really isn't a vast pool of people with the qualifications Endless has described out there and necessarily waiting to be a TA in a school. People with dyslexia qualifications usually get them so they can private tutor at much higher rates. I have been working in mainstream schools for over 25 years and have yet to come across a TA with any of the qualifications mentioned above.

HLTA does not come with a great uift in salary do many people are choosing not to do them. They are also fearful of being asked to take on whole classes so avoid them for this reason too.

I support parents of disabled children and watertight EHCPs are explicit about the training, qualifications and experience, including the qualifications I gave examples of. All the examples I gave have been examples from EHCPs I have been involved in finalising this academic year. The AET training in particular is not uncommon - to the point LAs sometimes include it without parents even requesting it. You may not have seen them. Many EHCPs are terribly written. Many staff in MS have only seen poor EHCPs. But they can and do exist.

Specialist dyslexia tutors would have more than I stated above. For example, a level 7 specialist tutor. That provision would typically be on top of the qualifications/training/experience staff such as TA/HLTA/LSAs would have.

LAs have to (and can be forced to!) fund provision at whatever level it takes to provide the provision. If it takes the LA funding it at a huge markup, that is what they need to do. That can be a much higher rate than TAs and HLTAs are usually paid at, including at a level of the teaching MPS. Again, LAs don't do this unless forced.

Endless I really don't doubt for a minute that there are some parents who have achieved this kind of EHCP and that some EHCP that I haven't seen are of a very high quality. I am sure there are some kids being supported by a very highly trained therapist or TA. However this isn't common. I have myself done three tribunal appeals and achieved a high standard of provision but that doesn't mean it is always going to be awarded just because it can be or should be legally. I have had tribunal judges tell me that provision does not have to be rolls royce standard!

I think sometimes the advice that brilliant provision is definitely available can be a bit misleading because not all parents can achieve it. In order to achieve brilliant provision you often need money, professional experts and representation. You also need some good fortune and the ability to put your life on hold and deal with a great deal of confrontation and stress.

It is common in good EHCPs. The problem is many EHCPs are not good.

or should be legally.

If the FTT errs in law, which is what you are suggesting here, parents can look at the UT. They don’t have to accept unlawfulness.

provision does not have to be rolls royce standard!

This is true. I haven’t said otherwise. Case law demonstrates this. There is no legal requirement to provide the best possible provision. Only what is reasonably required. For many DC with EHCPs, explicitly stating experience/qualifications/training is reasonably required.

Representation is not required. Independent reports often are. Where parents aren’t eligible for legal aid but can’t afford these, there are charities who can help. It also isn’t relevant to the OP since she posted “a set of great professionals i am paying for” in the OP for the ongoing content appeal.

You are absolutely and completely right. My experience as a parent of two children with send must obviously be wrong.

I think that it is rare to have a watertight five star EHCP. I admire those that have achieved that but I do think there are those that haven’t who have tried as hard or harder and I think that whatever your ehcp standard the children still need to get the best they can out of the provision they do have. We’ve had good TAs and programs of study with and without ehcp, and we have never had a “good” ehcp, and yet ds is doing well. Ultimately you have to make decisions every day about where to put your energy.

It would be really good if we could share what works for us and what’s been less effective. Pooled knowledge and experience is very helpful.

That sounds shit tbh. I don't expect my son's TA to communicate with me outside of school hours, they are entitled to their off time. But I do expect communication of some sort at the start or end of the day.

Much depends on the support and training a school SENCO gives a TA tbh. We've absolutely lucked out with ours, she's absolutely superb. And our school focus a lot on upskilling staff. But you absolutely have to have the right mindset and temperament for the job.