Inexperienced but v supportive SENCO

[lowexpectations]

My DS has severely disordered speech (4 in July). His pre-school SENCO is incredibly supportive but admits she is inexperienced. We recently applied for discretionary funding and to be considered for a statement (basically a request to be given the forms to apply for a statement). The request for consideration for statementing was rejected without any reason but we have been given 5 hours a week funding for 1:1 support.
My SENCO has no idea what to do with this funding.
I can contact DS's speech therapist and the OT who has worked with him for ideas but feel caught in the middle. Has anyone else had to work round an inexperienced SENCO?

Do you mean you made a request for statutory assessment, lowexpectations? Did you make it, or did the school?

You can appeal against a rejection to assess, and if you have missed the window for this, you can apply yourself (if the school made the last application) and vice versa.

Look at the IPSEA website for model letters. Parent Partnerships (although I have my doubts about how impartial they are) usually have some good information leaflets, including a guide to timescales for the whole assessment/statementing process (how long you have to submit info, appeal etc). Look on your LEA website - usually where PP services are found.

To be honest, as supportive as the SENCO is, if she is inexperienced and unable to provide the support and information you require, she is not doing her job properly. She needs to be proactive in getting advice from the LEA or outside agencies. If she is unable to do that, I would request (in writing and verbally, to the Headteacher) that the school/LEA seeks outside advice immediately. My son's school, for example, seek advice on autism from a local special school.

Obviously if she is supportive it'd be nice to keep her on board, but at the same time she has to step up and do her job!

Sorry, should have said - the worry with not having a statement is that the provision of that 5 hours of extra support is not legally binding. The hours can be reduced or withdrawn at any stage, and if/when your son moves school, you will have to negotiate provision all over again.

A statement will set out in a legal document how many hours the LEA are required to provide in terms of extra support for your child, and what this provision should consist of.

lowexpectations You don't have to appeal. Get the model letter from the IPSEA website as your starting point and submit your own request for a statutory assessment. You can do it right away, there are no timelines for second, third, fourth requests. If they persistently say no then you can consider appealing.

However, you do need to consider whether a statement is actually what you need. It would appear to me that you need some kind of intensive Speech and language therapy which can be given without a statement possibly, and some more intensive support in school.

I'm not saying you don't need a statement. I have no idea, but you DO need to know what it is you are trying to get for your child and you do need to have some idea where you are going to get the evidence for this.

hth

There should be within your LEA an Early Years Special Needs Advisory teacher or it may be called something similar) it is his/her job to support the pre school SENCO & should be able to advise about use of funding.

in the meantime.. our were and portage came in and showed them how they did there sessions, might be worth giving them a ring.

Thanks everyone, Angrywasp you could well be right that we don't actually need the statement. I'd hate to take up valuable resources that were needed elsewhere but it would have been useful to know why the request was rejected.
The speech & language therapy we're having at the moment is called intensive but is with 6 other children - has anyone else come across this?
Will definitely look at the IPSEA website and investigate the Early Years Special Needs advisory teacher.
Thanks everyone

lowexpectations Hating to take up resources that are valuable somewhere else is NOT your problem. If your child needs something, they need something. If you show any weakness in this area it will be used as an excuse to prevent you accessing support that you are entitled to.

Sorry to be blunt but being humble just doesn't work in the SEN arena.

Although being polite can - should have added that sorry!

LOL, you'll get therapy name inflation.

You'll be told that you are getting an extremely high rate of provision, whatever you are getting. You'll also be told you should be grateful for your luck in this.

Only consider your childs provision in relation to their needs, not what other people's children are getting.