My son, aged 7, has an ASD and was statemented three years ago. His nursery and reception years (at our local mainstream school) were difficult, but he had a a fab Year 1, courtesy of a wonderful teacher and a caring, experienced TA. We assumed that he would continue the upward trajectory in Year 2, but it simply hasn't been the case, and he is regressing before our very eyes. His TA moved away from the area last year, and has now been replaced by two inexperienced TAs (one morning, one afternoon - great for stability, eh?). Neither of them are a patch on last year's (DS's SALT all but admit this to me recently). The Y2 teacher seems capable and committed, but she just doesn't seem to have a very good understanding of DS's condition. We feel as though staff are merely 'coping' with our DS, and not offering him the quality 1-1 support that his Statement decrees. Put it this way, DS is floundering, not flourishing.
After what has been a pretty traumatic term (including many ineffective meetings) we are quickly losing faith in the school and DH and I are seriously considering moving him to another local mainstream setting, either a resourced school or one with a dedicated unit (we have many good ones in our area). DS is academically advanced, but has complex social/communication issues. We feel that his specific needs could be met much better elsewhere, i.e. a school with more experienced staff and understanding of ASDs.
However, we're wondering how easy or difficult this is going to be? Has anyone been in a similar situation and had to fight to the death with the LEA, or have any of you had an easier time of it? How long has it taken you to make the change (I'm conscious that there are only 9 months until DS makes transition to Year 3)? What procedure did you have to follow? Did having a Statement make life easier?
I know I'll have to contact my own LEA to answer my personal questions but I'd really like to read of any similar experiences.
DL x