Losing my TA after Christmas- desperate

[InsidetheFactoryGeek]

TA worked 1-1 with a child with ASD.

Child is on P scales and in Y2. They aren't quite non-verbal but do not speak in sentences. I can generally understand them now.

TA started the morning with some sensory input and some time doing physio-type exercises. They would come back into the classroom and complete one, very simple task and then have some iPad time. This basically repeated throughout the day.

I am absolutely dreading losing the TA and cannot switch off. Things are pretty desperate in school anyway. SENCO suggested a tent (I nearly cried).

What am I going to do?!

[Holidayshopping]

So school does get some money that is meant to be for SEN

There is a notional SEN budget which is calculated by a complex formula, but it isn’t ring fenced for SEN and some heads spend it on general class TAs. In today’s horrific budgets it may just be spent on running the school.

It is supposed to be up to £6000 per child on the SEN budget but it doesn’t actually work out like that and if you have more children on the SEN register, you don’t get any more money.

[cantkeepawayforever]

Glad that I work in a school / area where support is still specified in EHCPs in hours (to the nearest 15 minutes), including how those hours are distributed between classroom time and e.g. lunchtime supervision.

Made the 'flu outbreak amongst staff quite 'interesting' - essentially putting every available even vaguely healthy person into the 'support' pot and working out whether we had enough hours of enough people to cover all the hours for all the children with full EHCPs ... but a whole load better than suddenly having 1:1 removed.

[Hels20]

Thanks floating. So school does get some money that is meant to be for SEN. The school hardly has any SEN children so I am not sure where it really goes - other than paying for a part time SENCO.

I am hopeful we will get a plan - can’t give further info without outing myself but his needs are quite complex - and both LA EP and our private EP do think he should get a plan...what level of support it will provide will be interesting....

With a child with SEN my eyes have been opened to how there really is no money anywhere in the schools. I can’t believe how budgets have been cut for our most vulnerable. I can see how intervening now with our children with appropriate support can put them on the right track for life - with no intervention, we are just storing up issues for later life - depressions, suicide, criminality, no ability to work.

I feel for all you teachers where there is no money.

[Holidayshopping]

What funding and provision is listed on the EHC plan?

[HopeClearwater]

Hels20

There is no chance that you will get an EHCP for your son on the grounds of low self-esteem and anxiety, none at all. Has he no other diagnoses?

[FloatingthroughSpace]

Sen not seen. Bloody phone thinks it's cleverer than me.

[FloatingthroughSpace]

hels in theory money towards meeting seen is included in schools budget, plus they get extra for things like pupil premium (which is why they are so keen for people to claim for free school meals even if they don't want to use them). However none of this money is ringfenced as far as I know so in these days of super squeezed budgets, yes it's hard.

[Hels20]

Sorry to highjack thread but we are going through process of applying for an EHCP for our primary school age boy. We are feeling distinctly unwanted by the school - DS’s issues are extreme low self esteem and anxiety to the extent he doesn’t do any work at school.

If the school has to spend £6k for the child and then provision is topped up - how do they find that money? No wonder they don’t want my son as it means less money for another child.

[fleshmarketclose]

@imip definitely agree with being exhausted. Our LA had twisted and turned for months though by refusing to issue an amended statement, we threatened JR for that, they issued the amended statement naming a school that had told them no three times already! At that point solicitor engaged barrister who applied for JR on grounds of irrationality. The day we got leave, so hearing in five days, LA did a 180 degree turn naming the independent specialist I wanted.It obviously saved them the fees though for the seven months they stalled so was seen as worthwhile to them.
I'm currently awaiting judgement on latest Tribunal, LA haven't engaged with the process at all, been downright obstructive throughout and then took a barrister to Tribunal against an unrepresented parent! They have lost 99 out of 100 Tribunals this year so feeling reasonably confident but the stress they cause is awful I feel like 2018 has been another year wasted fighting the LA.

[imip]

Personally, I threatened JR and LA backed down, but in so many instances it doesn’t happen. Atm, parent groups around the UK are taking LAs to JR. Bristol decided in favour of parents and judges are still considering their decision for Surrey and Hackney. A number of other cases are in the pipeline.

And there are so many more cases that could be brought, but parents are just far too exhausted or do not understand how the system works.

[fleshmarketclose]

@imip if you do get leave for JR then LA's back down pretty quickly IME. So at 9.30am LA were adamant they were not budging, granted leave for JR at 11am, total u turn by LA for 1.30pm giving me exactly what I wanted. Trouble is grounds for JR are incredibly narrow and so they do twist and turn at every opportunity to try and remove grounds whilst avoiding doing what you want and that can be time consuming and expensive.

[imip]

I wish every LA would try to avoid JR, but in fact they don’t and JR cases go on all the time regarding send funding. All LAs have numerous court/tribunal cases going on at any one time regarding SEND funding/provision and placement. It’s truly outrageous.

[fleshmarketclose]

Effic this is why schools should be supporting parents to get specified and quantified provision in the EHCP so that if a school doesn't have the means to provide the support the parents have the option of legal recourse open to them. Dd's support has always been provided because the statement and then EHCP is legally binding. If school couldn't provide then LA would have to, removing the support is not an option and school's funding and staffing isn't really a parents concern tbh. If it's a problem for the school then they need to take it up with the LA because removing support that is specified and quantified would lead to Judicial Review and any LA will do their utmost to avoid that.

[babysharkah]

I have zero experience of this but surely all the other kids are going to suffer too if you are going to have to spend what sounds like most of your time with the child who needs the 1-1. It's a disgrace. Is there another 'general' TA for your class?

[FloatingthroughSpace]

effic
No, neither LA is in London
My child doesn't have full time 1:1, as that is not what was needed (imo as well)
The LA I work for takes a very dim view of schools not giving support to children where a budget is made for that, otherwise they are literally handing out money for nothing. Without knowing what the child's EHCP actually states, and whether any additionality is specified it's hard to know what parents could do about it. I accept that the ehcp may be so woolly that the school withdrawing the support can be fudged over, but we don't know that and it may specify what extra they are paying as the two LAs I am familiar with both do. It's worth OP checking in any case, surely?

[Effic]

Floating - you are in a very very small minority and I’m so very glad that you have a positive experience for your child. I expect you are in London as school funding is so much more due to legacy from Blair government? If not, your school is a rare exception not the rule.

Most of the rest of us are in the same boat as 4point2 - there is a national crisis in SEND funding caused by the national crisis in school funding. And the exponential increase of SEND children with severe and complex needs in mainstream.

Full 1-2-1 provision for EHCP is no longer possible because the school has to make a substantial contribution along with EHCP funding to cover this. These days, this funding Is all being used to get 1 teacher in front of a class of 30 and some resources. That’s it - that’s all we’ve got.

[fleshmarketclose]

Dd's has £39k funding stated on hers and £15k for transport but more importantly, like last week when told that a someone was leaving I was able to say well make sure there is a replacement for first day of term then as per the EHCP or I will want more compensation in line with what I received last time and will go for Judicial Review. Seems to concentrate the LA's minds considerably that way.

[fleshmarketclose]

Would recommend advising parents to contact IPSEA and SOSSEN rather than SENDIASS as quality and independence from LA's vary. What is needed is a well written EHCP with full description of needs and provision specified and quantified. Unfortunately many parents aren't aware of this. That way when schools cannot afford the TA the parents have the legal means to ensure that all provision is funded by the LA if needs be.

[FloatingthroughSpace]

*or the one which hosts my child's ehcp

[Sirzy]

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf

A handy read for anyone who wants to know what should be being provided. It’s very different to what actually is in most areas

[Russell19]

This is your Christmas holiday. Park it and take a break. Meet with SENCO first day back and go from there. I have taught KS1 and children like this rarely have funding yet so I have been there at least 3 times. You can only do your best x

[FloatingthroughSpace]

4point2, that is shit and not at all my experience of the LA where I work in the one which hosts my child's EHCP.

However whilst my LA is obviously good, and your is obviously shit, we don't necessarily know where the OP's is. Which is why getting parents to Sendiass and speaking to someone at the KA to find out if they are ok with this would still be a good idea. Fwiw I think if parents kicked up a stink it wouldn't stand up to scrutiny.

[4point2fleet]

Floating all my EHCPs state 'resources ordinarily available to schools' in the funding column. No actual figures at all.

I have contested this, to no avail. I don't think it's legal, but that is how it is on the ground.

Maybe the SEND department in your LA are great. In my LA, they are trying desperately to ensure they cannot be taken to tribunal for shit provision, so it is entirely in their own interests to ensure EHCPs are as woolly, lacking in quantification and open to interpretation as possible. It is the LA, including casework, who want to be able to say Fred has his sensory diet because he has a fiddle toy on his desk!

[wonderstuff]

I think there is huge variation in EHCP provision depending on county. Where I am they still state number of TA hours (and haven’t really changed much from statements). Parents should be able to get a personal budget if they aren’t happy with the school provision, this was written in to avoid schools putting inappropriate provision in place. I’ve never known a parent to do this, but I would be expecting them to be demanding it in these circumstances. I’d be raging if this was my child, why on earth has it happened? What are you expected to do?

[FloatingthroughSpace]

1. Tell parents to access IAS or Sendiass locally

1. Mention to the LA casework service that his support has been removed.

You won't be able to run a teacch workstation without a lot of 1:1 time spent in training the child up on how it works, over a half term or so. Once you have that in place the child would be able to be more independent, but only to activities they can access independently and as a sole strategy I'd be concerned you wouldn't be hitting the child's zone of proximal development enough.