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Getting child statemented?????

Hi I was just wondering if anyone could help me with understanding the process of getting a child statemented for (in my case) pre-school.
I understand from the teachers it is a long process and quite a hard one to be accepted.
Zachariah is 2yr4mths, he's due to start next January. He is visually impaired although to what degree we don't know-he does have a prominent head tilt when attempting to focus on things of interest, he's also only saying about 5words (all names of relatives) we are using sign language although this is still quite basic.
It is actually our speech therapist who said thiswould be a good idea and so she's given me an address to begin my 'plea'
I was just hoping some of you who'd been through it could help me with any tips or advice you think wouldve useful, thank you

Replies

  • Hi, not sure if this is a smilialr process but Isaac got referred to early years support, he sees Speech and language therapist, early years specialist support teacher, physio, orthotics and community paed, he is currently being assessed for Autistic spectrum disorder, dyspraxia and sensory intergration dysfunction, we are due to have a family service plan meeting on 28 April where hopefully we will start getting somewhere as I am really worried about him starting pre school then school without having something in place, he currently attends day nursery and they give him loads of extra support and one to one which they have said he wouldnt cope with out, so far we have been under the early years team for almost 6 months and are still no further forward as all the proffesionals are still undecided as to what exactly his needs are. Hope the process isn't too long for you, but others I have spoken to have said it is really frustrating having to fight for what your child needs.
  • Hi w4b not stalking you! Saw the thread then saw the author!

    Unfortunately the statementing process is very long winded and getting a statement can be very difficult as the local authoritys are working more towards inclusion rather than statementing, however with Zachs visual impairment I would think that they would support an application. If you, or anyone else reading this, needs advice, support or "translation" of the paperwork try getting in touch with the Parent Partnership Service.

    Fingers crossed that you get what Zach needs, kick some butt!! hayley1 hope you get what Issac needs too. Both my step-children were already statemented when they came to live with us (adhd & moderate learning difficulties so a bit different to both of you) and i didn't have to go through the process, trying to keep the hours they have is hard enough!

    w4b feel free to email me on fb if you want to rant, rave or have any questions about the process, have some fab colleagues and SENCO that i can ask questions of for you xx
  • Thank you both. Hayley, I'm not sure that is the same as we also already get lots of support and specialists, it's just to do with ensuring the school provides extra support for anything you feel your child would need to be at the level of other children- so basically I don't want zachariah left in a corner because he won't be as advanced as the other children in the class. I think it also means you can be entitled to one on one support if needed. We are just starting nursery and will have a support worker for him through the group 'first opportunitys' but that support stops age 3 and I need to go through statementing. Hth

  • Hello! My son has a statement of spec ed needs - he has down's syndrome and nystagmus. It's a long process and a bit frustrating at times but well worth it. Basically every specialist involved with your child is required to write about them and their abilities and additional needs. You may also be visited by an educational psychologist who will chat to you and do play tests with your child to see what sorts of levels they're functioning at. Every report from the specialists comes to you and you can add to it or query things or completely disagree! Then all that information is put into one report - the Statement. I think it's worth havign (as long as it\s good) because it works as a contract with school. It sets out what provision your child should have and gives you a leg to stand on if they're not providing that. For instance it may talk about your child having a certain number of hours of support in a classroom or a particular amount of speech therapy etc. It's tricky if you have to fight for the right things to be included on the statement and I totally agree that the parent partnership service is brilliant at helping with it all. Start it soon and don't be put off if you have to be pushy. I got the direct phone number and email of our caseworker and badgered until she got things done! It's not fun, but it's worth it! Sorry about long reply!!!!
  • Thank you, I'm definitely going to try and fight for it and have just drafted my request letter to send off. I'm sorry but what is/are IEP's? We've been seeing specialists and having home visits etc since he was 6weeks old......... I'm a bit frustrated though as his paediatrician has retired without any warning and we're now 'paed-less' until someone chases it up grrrrr! We are still seeing one at the hospital but the one we had, saw us all the time!
  • Hi, wanted to offer some advice as a SEN coordinator at a primary school...
    an IEP is an Individual Education Plan and normally when a school wants to apply for a statement we have to prove all the things we have already done and that needs is of a level to qualify for a statement. IEPs help us prove what we have already done.
    they do consult people such as an education psycholigist, speech and language therapist, community paediatrician, visual or hearing impairement team (Hi/Vi) , Occupational therapist of whoever is appropriate and it is decided how much support is needed, and in what form that should take. parents are also asked to contribute.

    however if a child has a physicaly disability such as a vI and is not at school yet you would not be expected to produce IEPs. the agencies involved with your child would still be consulted!

    DEF contact the parent partnership service, they are amazing!

    just a point to note (not that it matters or anything) that now funding is devolved to schools in their yearly budget they no longer get extra money for
    a child with a statement (though think this IS different for Nursery school) so the more notice you can give a school that your child is coming in with a statement the better prepared they can be. we have 2 children who came in to foundation stage with statements and it helped us enormously that we knew early on and could put provision in place
  • Thank you mrsb, I'm in the process of it all now, my vista is assessing him and is not sure about whether he'll need it until blackboards and reading become an issue etc but we're still undecided. Apparently speech isn't even considered a need for additional support but I'm hoping that between all the professionals they will do best by zachariah as he has such determination and willingness to try it would be such a shame if that was squashed in the school environment.
  • I hope that things get sorted...
    we have 2 children at school with statement and BOTH have speecha and language needs on their statements and as part of their specified provision!
    maybe it is different in different areas!
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