Bromley LA have surpassed themselves.

[CrackersInBed]

Notoriously unsympathetic and difficult LA who make you beg for a Statement at the best of times ...... have now come up with the plan to not bother giving out statements at all for children whose needs are less than level 5. Instead they will just give the school an extra bit of money as part of their general budget. The amoung will be calculated using a general model which predicts the likely "achievement" of children at school.

If you are in Bromley borough please make sure you register your unhappiness at this plan during the consultation period, which ends on 30th October.

Does anyone have any other thoughts on how we campaign to stop this happening?

Just a thought....as I don't know the ins and outs of statementing..but I would have thought that the criteria for statementing are set out in statute and that it is not up to individual LAs to decide to change them and add arbitrary cut off points.

is that worth exploring?

This is yet another form of devolved funding; many LEAs are going down this particular route. IPSEA have complained on many occasions to the Secretary of State about such moves.

You need to speak to IPSEA about this www.ipsea.org.uk as they may not be aware of this LEA's course of action.

Of course what they are doing is completely illegal (its blanket policy and these are not permitted). However, LEAs know the law and they are not above it in any way.

Would also be contacting your local MP and get him on side.

What about the Government's own Children's Act and Every Child Matters campaign ??

I am arranging to see my MP ASAP as I also thought that mainstream inclusion etc and statementing were national government policies etc so I don't really understand how an LA can decide to just do their own thing instead.

Hi CrackersIB, looks like w are in the same LEA. Have you done a letter to BAT. I'm thrashing mine out this weekend, but as suggested above will make a complaint to IPSEA.

Maddie, who / what is BAT? I am planning on writing to everyone I can think of to be honest - the News Shopper are next on my list right now ......!

Crackers, Sorry mean Bromley Autistic Trust. They are asking for parents to contact them and send them copies of their letters. Think I will also try Bromley Mencap.

Ah OK. So far I have contacted the News Shopper and John Horam MP. I will email my response directly to Karen Fletcher-Wright and also deliver it by hand to the Civic Office. I am involved with Bromley Scope and through them am trying to contact more parents if possible. I will contact IPSEA too.

FFS if i think it will help I may set myself up outside the Phoenix Centre in Bromley and hand out leaflets to parents - I just can't believe they are trying to sneak it through.

Apparently there are 2000 kids with statements in our Borough - I reckon that if we contacted their parents then every single one of them would say no to this change, but of course we won't have that opportunity.

Had letters yesterday from LEA, Parent partnership and BAT about. I will also hand mine in at civic centre in person.
One of my chlidren attends a group for children with asd and I have asked that all parents there be informed.
I think the problem may be that parents of children with statements above a level 5 may not respond believing this won't affect them.

A few years ago Bromley reconfigured all its unit provision and we parents were such a minority group that we just weren't listened to. Howvever despite all the promises made by the LEA the situation for children with SN seems to have got worse instead of better. I notice the head of SEN has resigned but I don't expect the next one to be any better, if anything I expect them to come in with some big cost cutting plan and then resign a few years down the line when it's all gone wrong as that appears to be the norm.

bromley has been crap for years. We left when ds1 was a pre-schooler after years waiting did various phoenix centre appointments. We were told there he had mild language delay, in fact he's severely autistic (language delay so mild he's still non verbal aged 10). I don't think there would have been a school for him at all in bromley.

I know the NAS are a bit useless and I never got anywhere near the place when living in bromley (not for want of trying) but would it be worth contacting elliot house? Also I think there are some SN playgroups in petts wood (bit vague sorry).

Hi stmt, hope you are all well. The most important thing in Bromley appears to be maintaining it's flowerbeds!

We are in a right old mess here. I think maybe your son would have ened up at RP whcih has since been renamed, hope that makes sense.

SN playgroup still in Petts Wood so will try them. Not found Elliot house helpful in past.

OMG! Blood boiling.... really lost for words.... Please check out the legal obligations on the LA....Abdicating responsibility to the schools?....They have a duty of care!

Bloody problem it that this is happening in LA's across the country. But they have an obligation to listen to the parents, please ask them about their parent involvement forum and join now.

Good news today is that dd's headteacher said that he has written a letter of objection to the LA - they don't give a toss about the parents but maybe they will care what the schools say?

bad news was that some other mums with Statements were saying that they aren't too bothered because it probably won't affect their own kids Not the most helpful attitude.

I can't remember RP but I will ask a friend

DS1 still loves Bromley. He'd probably remember RP. He found his way to the (then) Holmes Place (now virgin or something I see) on google maps streetview the other day and started banging on about swimming and throwing his trunks at me. Then he wandered back to stand outside out old house. He last saw those places 8 years ago when he was 2