Compose my leaving letter for school

[claw3]

Im hoping i will be doing this tomorrow.

What do you think i should include? apart from the Head could do with learning a few social skills herself.

Ds has an X-factor karaoke machine with I Will Survive disc that we can use on the school. We could have a MN SN Roadshow

Restrained, that was what I was going for. Though warming to the idea of random usage of refrained, most hit pop songs have nonsense lyrics don't they [lofty ideas]. Though lawsuit from both Gloria G. and Claw's school would bring me back down to earth

Send copy of letter to Chair of governers as well as head - I just did this and it felt sooo good.

I do believe the governers are going to give the HT a grilling over the points I raised in my letter.

Smelly, oh no, no offence taken whatsoever, its funny

Indigo, yes thanks, i will and Ofsted etc. Im feeling relieved and the letter will be the closure, my parting gift!

Draft letter i have thrown together, your thoughts please?

I have still to add DDA, SEN COP and get info from site Debs provided.

Dear Mrs HT

Re: DS

Ofsted report states ?the plan for improvement lacks quantifiable measures against which progress can be monitored and its impact evaluated?. School appear to have exactly the same problem with SEN IEP writing and when I have constructively tried to put this right, the school have become extremely hostile towards me and refused to communicate with me.

I am expected to believe that ds is making progress, that all recommendations made by professionals are being implemented and Ds is happy in school, just because school say he is when there is overwhelming evidence that would prove otherwise.

There is no evidence of ds making progress, he has failed to met IEP targets set in October 2009 and SALT targets set in September 2009. No recommendations made by professionals are strategies used in the IEP. Many concerns listed in the IEP?s, do not have targets set so progress can be monitored. There is also evidence of ds being reprimanded for his difficulties.

SEN COP 5:23 ?provision for a child with special needs should match the nature of the need?

DS began engaging in repetitive behaviour in November which resulted in self injury and being hospitalised in December 2009 and almost having to have a finger amputated. This behaviour continued and ds was sent home from school in February 2010 needing medical intervention. Despite me provided the school with evidence from my GP, photographs of injury and blood on his school t-shirts and the behaviour being observed by a professional in school, you continue to deny that this took place in school.

Furthermore ds has been left to sit in his own faeces all day because I am not believed. Even when ds did report to staff that he had ?wet himself? procedures already in place were not followed.

Ds began refusing school on PE days on 18th May 2010, I phoned SENCO who refused to speak with me or return my call. I emailed SENCO she replied asking me not to. I wrote to school with suggestions, I did not receive a reply. On the 15th June we had a meeting and no agreement was reached and in order for the Head Teacher to agree to another meeting being arranged for the 30th June, I was made to agree that I would not contact the school in the meantime. ASD Outreach has emailed SENCO recommendations as he is currently not attending for 2 PE days a week, although SENCO replied to the email, she failed to acknowledge any recommendations and ds has been unable to return to school on these days.

After a meeting on 1st February 2010, I was also instructed by the Head Teacher with the agreement of SENCO not to contact the school again as they were only prepared to communicate with me once a term at prearranged meetings. These meetings have never been arranged.

Ds has been at school for 18 months, I have spoken to SENCO on the phone twice. I have had 3 meetings with SENCO. My only form of communication has been to write letters, I have only ever written with regards to important issues, such as in response to the school?s writing of IEP?s after being invited to comment upon them by the covering letter. Bullying, ds being strangled and hit by others at playtime as reported to me by teachers and further incidents as reported to me by ds. ds being hospitalised and self injuries behaviour. ds returning home smothered in faeces.

I am deeply disappointed by the fact that ds is grossly misunderstood and staff have not informed themselves about conditions such as ASD, thus leaving vulnerable children at risk. I am not prepared to leave ds in distress any longer. I have given the school enough time and enough examples of the type of help he needs. I have tried desperately to work in partnership with the school, now sadly I have to face the conclusion that school do not want to help at all and this evident by all of the above.

ds has been offered a school place at x school on the x and will not be returning to your fucking shitty school i will change this.

What do you think?

Looks good to me. I would also put in something about "Iam not prepared to put ds' mental and physical wellbeing at risk any longer" or similar

but then I am prone to over dramatising

would also mention that staff have denied ds is having soiling accidents in school, despite him coming home caked in shit. and that oyu have had to present evidence of this(ie send back school trousers) to even get acknowledgement it happens... which still resulted in no apology, no plan put in place ofr dealing with it, etc etc

ds is not grossly misunderstood, they have failed to ensure that ds' needs are understood. Don't put it on him.

Also copy in Ofsted. They probably won't take any notice but it will be good for the HT to see the whole world copied in.

Also, you were 'alarmed' to be instructed by the HT not to contact the school.

hth

And you are subsequently removing him as this has become a child protection issue.

(that might scare them into thinking you are making moves for a fuller investigation)

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, I have included them in my lettr. It has been written and sent (yesterday).

I have told the Governors i expect a reply to this one, the personal comments written about me removed from school file and an apology from the school for the way both ds and i have been treated. That should put the schools back up!

Will print off a paper copy today and send to Ofsted etc.

Hey Claw I am sooo pleased for you and your DS.
Just been loitering for past few weeks as stressed out by tribunal etc and feel if I start a thread I will just start ranting forever.
So glad to see a positive outcome on here. I hope this school is the new start you need.
I love the song too!
And the letter was great.

Hi Agnes, thank you and sorry to hear you are having a stressful time. Sometimes it helps to have a good rant. You are far ahead of me in the Statementing propose, they have only just agreed to assess ds, so not much help to you im afraid.

This school seems so much better, ive had 2 meetings with SENCO's already. I only ever had 3 meetings in 18 months with old SENCO, an improvement already!

Hey Claw, when Agnes and I get through it we'll pull you and debs up behind us - promise!

Please Star...I could do with a bit of pulling along!

Thats ok CLaw.
I am bit paranoid - LA really sneaky at moment.
Was post on ABAYahoo looking for people to dish the dirt on ABA provider and am convinced tis my SEN officer in disguise! So have to be careful what I say about tribunal.
Their case is quite desperate but hard not to take it personally.
They are being mean to our nursery too and am worried nursery will bail on us - although they have coped with similar criticism before, the Manager told us the staff were "completely demoralised" LA had said nothing positive about them at all.
Nursery try their best but have had next to no support except what we have paid for ourselves.
They are devoted to DS though.
Opposite situation to you can't bear the thought of having to find a new nursery that will be sympathetic to ABA
Its very awkward - just get to get through to summer hols and then will be tribunal in Sept.
DH thinks I am depressed (he's probably right!)
On the plus side I haven't given turning 40 this year a minute's thought - I might ask for a giant tub of prozac!

Agnes, turning 40 on its own entitles you to a giant tub of prozac, i think its the equivalent of collecting your bus pass when you turn 60 (i will be 41 this year)

Sounds like they are having to resort to getting personal and demoralisation as they are getting desperate. I suppose this is a good sign as they dont have anything else. Doesnt help you any though. Why they just cant say ok, hands up we have fuck all, you win and save everyone this personal turmoil, i dont know. Perhaps they might cave in before tribunal?

star yes please, you and Agnes are my role models, my inspiration!

Agnes I'm too paranoid to let go of it atm, but once my tribunal is over (soon) you are welcome to every scrap I have written.

I know my 'story' will be very different to yours but it might give you a framework at least for some of the documents you might want to produce. For me, it was figuring out the frameworks that too a huge amount of time.

LOL claw at role models. I don't feel much of a model, having sat slumped on the sofa in front of my computer for days on end eating whatever junk I could find that was quick.

And actually, I'm nothing more than a parent who is just a bit further in the process than you, nothing more, really. I have learned from the people ahead of me.

Agnes, you may know where I am in the country, are you close?

stuck in with ill and grumpy ds. Laughed out loud smelly, thank you! made my day.

Star, but you havent given up, no matter how much shit they throw at you, how mad they try and make you sound, how personal they try and make it and how many lies they tell.

I feel less crazy, because of people like you and Agnes