A teachers opinion desperately needed

[Taraohara]

Knock knock

Can I come in please?

Sorry to interrupt staffroom chat but any ideas what I can I do about issues I’m having at my child’s school?

I made a complaint last year that school were not providing the full support stipulated in my child’s Ehcp . Governors upheld out complaint. School said it was mistake, they didn’t know how many hours dc should have been getting but promised it would be fully provided ftom then on.

This year dc still not getting full provision.

School said it’s just been a mistake.

I’m putting I formal complaint again. But really what will happen. Last one upheld by governors, yet nothing’s changed. DfE will only look into once I’ve exhausted new complaints this time around.

The LA has been informed. They’ve made no response.

What can I do as a parent to ensure the full entitlement is provided to my child?

Any any ideas would be welcome. I feel
So alone in this situation

Are you the poster who has put another thread? If so I'll reply here and keep it in one place

If you're getting nowhere then your area should have a parent service. It's called different things in different areas but it's a central advice and contact line. They can advise on legal options more than many of us on here can.

@Lola

Sorry yes!!!!

The other one dissaperared off the board!
I think that service for my area is called contact - given details by DFE. But they said there was nothing that they could do or suggest other than go through complaints process again !

But thank you anyway!!

That's unusual. I thought they were supposed to be more useful than that.
Have you looked at any charities who specialise in this sort of issue.

If you've already followed school procedures and there's no improvement then the next step would logically be LA (due to their responsibility) or the MAT (if an academy).
Eventually it would be an ofsted issue.

@Lola

It was a very bizarre conversation... I summarised it by saying so there’s nothing I can do? She said, not really. Have lots of calls about similar issues !
But to be honest I don’t even want the time consuming effort of legal or ofsread. I just want dc to have the full benefits of the EHCp !

You may find that a letter to the head and governors saying "following X Y Z issues and and a b c times I have been willing to work with the school to resolve the situation for the sake of my child, I would like a review of support and EHCP In X time frame otherwise I will have no option but to speak to Ofsted about the school's persistent refusal or inability to meet their legal duty."

I rarely advocate Ofsted but it's absolutely there as a final step

@lola

That’s a good idea ... but I’ll be that parent! Yikes !!!

Not a teacher but... contact IPSEA they are fantastic and will guide you through the process of complaint and tribunal.

@SandunesAndRainclouds

Thank you! I’ve filled in their contact form- fingers crossed!

No you wouldn't be "that parent".

"That parent" is for unreasonable parents who kick off, complain, demand meetings over non issues, claim their child would never lie or tell a half story to get out of trouble, think the rules don't apply to their DC and are generally quite confrontational and argumentative. They're easily identified on MN by lots of hysterically angry language and cheerleading tcomplain to heads/governor/oftsed, or can be found claiming anyone advocating a sensible approach must worship teachers like we are gods. They often give bad advice too because it's based on their own vendettas.

Any parent who has reasons for concerns of complaints and needs to hold schools to account via appropriate channels is never "that parent"

Yes IPSEA have letters to send for different issues, I would contact them .

Agree with ipsea www.ipsea.org.uk/non-implementation-webinar there is a lot of guidance here. Ultimately LA is responsible for provision, it may require going to tribunal. Parents are successful in 89% of tribunal cases, great statistic to have on your side!

Does anyone know what going to tribunal could achieve?

I’m in a situation where the school can just keep not giving full support and when challenged just ‘opps it’s a mistake/ oversight ‘

They helped me getting my daughter’s EHCP implemented just with one phone call. You need to make high level complaints to LEA as they hold ultimate responsibility for the provision of the EHCP. They usually move pretty swiftly if you start quoting the Children & Families Act, Disability Discrimination, Equality Act and Tribunal!

They are not meeting their statutory duty. I’d definitely be on to IPSEA and I’d be asking them to use every legal term possible to emphasise that point. If a complaint has already been upheld then it sounds like misconduct on the part of the senco. Didn’t know how many hours they should have?! Nonsense. It’s the first thing any senco looks at when reading an ehcp

Is your child's EHCP one that stipulates hours, or band funding?
The top up funding provided by the LA does not actually cover the number of hours the plan may stipulate. Schools are supposed to fund up to £6k from their own budgets, which in theory pays for 12 hours TA support, but the per pupil funding that comes into school is well below this amount, and is used for everything, let alone the provision of a 1:1 TA. The plan then stipulates a further number of hours that the LA will fund, in theory. Again, in practice that money goes nowhere near to what it's supposed to.
In my school we currently have ten EHCPs totalling 240 hours support. Our notional SEn budget which is supposed to cover the first £6k for each child, i.e. £60k in total, plus funding for all the remaining 55 children with SEN who don't have an EHCP but still need additional support, assessment etc, is actually only £73k this year. The additional top up funding totals £60K and is supposed to be enough to pay for 120 hours worth of TAs. Per week! At the lowest Ta rate, including all associated employer costs, that works out at £71k. We pay more for more qualified TAs.

The reality is, schools are having to rob Peter to pay Paul when it comes to SEN funding.

The other side of this is that for the vast majority of children with EHCPs, a 1:1 Ta is detrimental to developing their independence. We recently had a pupil with full time support who transferred to a special provision, and her mum is amazed that she, along with most of the other children, no longer have a 1:1

Not only that soon-to-be but that some hours with professionals may not be face to face with the child.

E.g. a therapist might work with the school for 10 hours a term but 4 are fortnightly meetings with teh child and the rest is in staff development to upskill the staff.

It still sounds like the OP's school is failing their duty.

@mynameisMrG

I think you'll find that Sencos have almost no control over implementing staffing needs for EHCPs. It's the biggest bane of our lives! We know what the EHCP states, after all we have usually been the ones who've done all the leg work to get one in the first place. Over the last academic year I managed to get 5 plans awarded, but for the 20 weeks plus it took for the assessments to take place, we were providing almost full time support with no additional funding in place. Our budget is shot to pieces as a result.

@LolaSmiles

My point is that it's an absolute funding minefield throughout the country.

True on the funding as a problem. I was thinking out loud perhaps on how a plan may seem like it's not being done properly when the hours are elsewhere.

The OP still is right to raise the issues though.

How are they failing OP, and how do you know?

@soontobe

Well this senco required an uplift in hours before the school could offer a place.

Then forget about that and looked and An old Ehcp with the Lower hours . The school said they’d made a mistake and looked at wrong Ehcp . That was last year

Buy this year it continues with dc not getting the things they have put in place.

They say it Will be happening now but only after I call them out on it

My worry is they have reduced the support/ and I’ve found out about it . But I won’t know what actually happens in the day when dc is away from me

@Teachermaths

There was one incident witnessed by another child of mine. I contacted the school and they provided no explanation ( re lack lack of support) but told me kids involved in incident with my child had been excluded

The other occasions they have not disputed at all. Just said it’s been an ‘oversight ‘

@Teachermaths

Also this year they have apologised but really I can’t understand why the same mistakes ( ie not providing Ehcp support) can happen less than a year after An upheld complaint about the exact issue

I take it your child is entitled to 1:1 all day every day and isn't getting it? Lunchtimes are a complete minefield to cover, teaching staff and TAs are entitled to a break and there's not many people who want to be employed for half an hour every day.

Lack of provision happens regularly due to budget constraints and lack of staffing. In exam season all our LSAs get pulled to be reader/scribes for exams and pupils are left to cope without them. We've got 2 Y7 students with full time 1:1 provision specified on their EHCPs but we don't have any budget to recruit for this. We've upped one staff member to full time and usually the students are in the same class so get 1:2 provision.

If your child isn't receiving the full support specified in the EHCP then your complaint is with the Local Authority, and not the school as they are in breech of their statutory duty because it is their responsibility to ensure that the EHCP is maintained. You need to send the letter template here to the Director of services at the LA. You will more than likely then need to send a pre action protocol letter threatening Judicial Review if the LA is anything like ours do make an appointment to speak to either IPSEA or SOSSEN.