Janet O'Keefe, Speech and Language Therapist

Statistics published by the Department for Education today show that pupils with statements are nine times more likes to be permanently excluded from school than those pupils without any SEN. Meanwhile, the number of pupils with statements of SEN receiving one or more fixed period exclusions is six times higher than for pupils with no SEN. The Statistical First Release (SFR) provides information about exclusions from schools and exclusion appeals in England during 2010/11. It reports national trends in the number of permanent and fixed-period exclusions together with information on the characteristics of excluded pupils such as age, gender, ethnicity, free school meal eligibility, and special educational needs (SEN) as well as the reasons for exclusion. The key points from the latest release are: There were 5080 permanent exclusions from state-funded primary, state-funded secondary and all special schools in 2010/11. In 2010/11 there were 271,980 fixed-period exclusions from state-funded secondary schools, 37,790 fixed-period exclusions from state-funded primary schools and 14,340-fixed period exclusions from special schools. The average length of a fixed-period exclusion in state-funded secondary schools was 2.4 days, for state-funded primary schools the average length of a fixed-period exclusion was 2.1 days. The permanent exclusion rate for boys was approximately three times higher than that for girls. The fixed-period exclusion rate for boys was almost three times higher than that for girls. Pupils with SEN with statements are around nine times more likely to be permanently excluded than those pupils with no SEN. Children who are eligible for free school meals are nearly four times more likely to receive a permanent exclusion and around three times more likely to receive a fixed-period exclusion than children who are not eligible for free school meals. What are we to make of these statistics?

A mainstream school it would seem is, quite often, unable to cope with the high level of demands placed upon it by children with special educational needs and challenging behaviour and for these children, inclusion is the last thing they need. They need a specialised environment that can help them overcome difficulties of background or learning style or hidden disability so they have the same chance of a successful life as everyone else. Timely intervention is crucial for these children so that they can be identified and assisted long before things get to the stage of an exclusion being considered. When thinking specifically of children with statements, I wonder what percentage of these SEN children, or of children with SEN but without statements, were excluded for persistent disruptive behaviour compared to the other reasons above. A child displaying persistent disruptive behaviour almost certainly has underlying issues, whether BESD, ADHD, ASD etc, that prevents them from accessing the curriculum and hence makes them feel that school is a waste of time. A large percentage were also recipients of free school meals, which also indicates that poor children (with or without SEN) are hugely at risk of not getting the support they need in a mainstream school environment. Many may come from difficult family backgrounds and would be much more suited to a nurture group environment such as those set up by child psychologist Charlie Mead, if only they existed more widely.   See http://www.wordswell.co.uk/tapf-conference/october-charlie-mead.php

There is much interesting analysis that can be taken from these stats aside from the startling SEN figures, for example the comparatively high ratio of exclusions for traveller children (who may or may not have SEN). These would take far more time to ponder than I have available, but I hope someone does and lets me know.

First published by Tania Tirraoro on Special Needs Jungle where you will find links to all the stats

 Parents of children with special education needs and the professionals who support them attended a national conference, Towards a Positive Future,  in Newbury on Saturday, 16 June.

Speakers included Jane Asher,  President of the National Autistic Society, who spoke to the gathering at the Arlington Arts Centre, Mary Hare School, and said afterwards:

 “At a time when the procedures for families of those with autism and other conditions are in a state of flux, it’s more important than ever for those affected to have access to information that will help them access the support services they need. This Wordswell conference impressed me enormously with its range of speakers, and the professionalism and knowledge exhibited by them: I found it extremely interesting and was honoured to be a small part of the day – I’m sure all those attending found it as informative and useful as I did.

‘One of the biggest problems that we hear about at the National Autistic Society is that of accessing the right school for a child with autism. From getting a diagnosis in the first place, via the difficulties of getting a statement through to the minefield of having to go to tribunal against the Local Authority, every step of the way can be fraught with tension, unhappiness and despair. All of us who are involved in the world of special educational needs are waiting to see just how the proposed changes to the system will turn out, and whether they will improve the current complex and often ineffectual situation.

“Janet and her colleagues are extremely well informed about this area, and her new book, Towards a Positive Future, contains a wealth of information, based on her own experience and that of relevant case studies, about what it’s like to be on the other end of the system and how tricky it can be to negotiate.”

Organiser Janet O’Keefe, who founded Wordswell Speech and Language Therapy Services in Cambridgeshire, and is an expert witness for families at appeal tribunals, said their second annual conference at the Arlington Arts Centre had been very successful:

“We are tremendously grateful to Jane Asher for her support, and for our excellent expert speakers too. Without exception, the range of speakers and presenters at this year’s Towards a Positive Future conference were exceptional and all the delegates feedback is overwhelmingly positive. Parents and professionals learned much from each others experiences, and particularly those parents who have had previously bad experiences feel a sense of renewed hope for their children as they realise there are passionate, knowledgeable and caring professionals working in the field of SEN.”

Some of the topics covered by expert speakers included the government’s planned reforms for SEN, how the care system was failing vulnerable young people who disappear or die in care before the age of 25, as well as the parent perspective and writing SEN statements.

In addition, there were 12 seminars covering social skills, speech language and communication needs, dyslexia, deafness, acquired brain injury, NLP, Down Syndrome and autism.

We hope to offer these presentations in a webinar and e-course soon so they are available to a wider audience and make the conference an annual event.  Please put 19th June 2013 in your diaries now.  Venue tbc but is likely to be Central London (and 2014 in Birmingham).

Families whose children have special educational needs and seek the best provision for them at schools are often treated like second-class citizens by local authorities and tribunal appeal panels.

 Sheridan Humphreys, the mother of a 12-year-old son, Max, who has hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy and epilepsy, has experienced three traumatic SEN tribunal appeals which cost her her marriage and twice her career as a PR Consultant in the entertainment industry.

Sheridan is sharing her devastating experiences to promote an SEN conference, Towards a Positive Future, for families and professionals, which is being held on Saturday, 16 June at the Mary Hare School, Newbury.  Speakers include Jane Asher, President of the National Autistic Society.

Max is now settled in a specialist residential school in Surrey for boys with severe emotional and behavioural difficulties 50 miles away from her home in Godalming, Surrey.

 “It’s the right school for him and I am now concentrating on rebuilding my career, my emotional health and my family,” says Sheridan, who is a parent representative on Family Voice in Surrey which ensures the voice of parents is heard with regards to the design and delivery of services for children with disabilities and SEN in the county  and nationally as part of the National Network of Parent Carer Forums. She is also a parent representative on Surrey’s Local Change Board, which governs the progress of the  government’s pathfinder trials which are taking place there, part of the government’s reforms for SEN provision.

However, Sheridan admits she has paid a heavy price in seeking recognition of Max’s condition, which has been made much worse by the unhelpful approach of LEAs and the present intimidating tribunal appeal system.

“Not a week goes by without my being asked to prove to various statutory authorities that Max is a) disabled, or b) still has the ‘incurable’ conditions. By the time he was nine-years-old we had been through three SEN tribunal appeals,” says Sheridan.

 “The first appeal was when he was coming to the end of his nursery school. The nursery school led the process to apply for a Statement of SEN. This was declined, and so we appealed. And the day before it went to court, we were advised that our appeal was successful. I did this appeal myself, but it cost my marriage and my job.

 “The second appeal was more dramatic and came towards the end of year one. On starting primary school, he was only allowed to attend for half a day for most of his reception class, and by the time he was six, he had been excluded frequently. He had even had his hands tied up by an LSA who could not cope with him – which led to a child protection investigation. I found another mainstream school that I liked, and it had a place, but the head teacher of my chosen school denied there was a place at the school and did not want my son.

 “Fortunately, I won the other part of the tribunal – my son’s hours of one-to-one support increased from 20 to 32 hours, specifically so he could not be excluded for events taking place in lunch breaks!

 “I was most shocked at the tribunal when one of the panelists thanked a head teacher for coming, saying we realise your time is valuable etc. I had to take a day’s holiday to be there, the panel are paid to be there, even my pro bono barrister wanted to be there… yet was I thanked? No. I was treated as the agitator.

 “However, the exclusions continued until a new head teacher came along who did not believe in exclusions. I was relieved, but it turned out that my son was now spending most of his days sitting outside her office.

 “I came to the decision that if he was going to continue to go to school, then he needed to attend a special school, and I found one, in Surrey. Surrey LEA eventually started to look for a school for my son – after the new school year had started. The special school that I chose let my son attend, and while waiting for the LEA to name a school, I was asked to contribute what I could afford towards its £10,000 a year costs.

 “But, after three months, the school said they couldn’t meet my son’s needs without proper funding for his placement. Max was excluded after four months. Excluded from a special school! I thought my heart would break. I couldn’t believe that I was again facing another SEN appeal! We didn’t have to go to court. But it did cost me £1200 in legal fees. I suppose I was lucky. But once again, it cost me my job.

 “Most of my friends are parents of children with special educational needs. Most of them have children who are home educated and/or excluded from school. And they tell me that the SEN tribunal system is still the same.

 “This is what is the worst thing about it – no matter how much we could be learning from the system or from traumatic experiences like mine, nothing changes and nothing improves, and so much money is just wasted. Parents are treated like second-class citizens or trouble makers for wanting their child to have the best education to meet their special needs.

 “In my experience, we only ended up in the appeals system due to the errors and incompetence of two LEAs (in particular, their breaching the SEN code of practice). Yet only once have I heard of an SEN tribunal chairman telling an LEA that they have behaved inappropriately. It’s also hard, virtually impossible,  for parents to work out where to go or who to sue to reclaim any costs. I would like to see professionals and LEAs held accountable by SEN tribunals, either through financial penalties…or some other measure.  At the tribunals, there are no penalties for LEAs who break the law – so no incentives for them to change their pattern – and therefore parents are put through the same processes again and again.

 “Also, parents are the least respected ‘professional’ in the room at an actual SEN tribunal. I certainly felt that head teachers and LEA officials were regarded with greater respect than I was, while I was regarded as the trouble-maker who had brought the appeal.”

 Janet O’Keefe, a speech and language therapist who is organising the conference and is an expert witness for families at tribunal appeal hearings, said Sheridan’s experiences highlighted why urgent reforms were needed to make the appeal process more conciliatory and family friendly. While parents naturally seek the best education to meet their child’s special needs, this can lead to conflict as present laws state it only has to provide “adequate” provision. The government reforms says that each child should “reach their potential”, which I very much welcome.

“The present appeal system is very traumatic and expensive for families. Since all tribunals came under the Ministry of Justice, hearings have had to be held in government buildings instead of hotels or dedicated tribunal buildings to save money.  This means that instead of a formal business meeting, special education appeal hearings are now held in magistrates’ courts, asylum and immigration buildings, or social security offices.  Often there is security on the door like an airport to scan and search all bags and people entering the building. The whole process is increasingly stressful – and all because parents dared to disagree with the provision the local authorities are offering to support their child who through no fault of their own has special educational needs.”

 Please see www.wordswell.co.uk for further information about the conference.

Ends

Notes to editors:

1. For photos or interview requests, please contact media officer Ellee Seymour on 01353 648564, 07939 811961, or email ellee.seymour@btopenworld.com
2. Full details of the green paper for special educational needs, please see the Department for Education, http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/sen/a0075339/sengreenpaper

Yesterday we attended a Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal.  Not unusual as I often appear with parents as an Expert Speech and Language Therapy Witness but yesterday I went with my parent hat on.  Our child is a delightful, happy and loving child who has to cope on a daily basis with a complex cocktail of competing symptoms. He does it all with a smile as long as he has at least one adult’s sole and undivided attention which is not how most 8-9 year olds function.

 The surgery he has is palliative. We do not know what his life expectancy is. However, all we have ever set out to do is to provide him with as normal a life as possible and as happy a life as possible for as long as possible.

 It is easy to forget how ill he is when most of the time he looks so normal and appears so alert we believe because his heart condition is masked by his ADHD.

He is described in the Tribunal papers as a lively and busy boy who wants to run around and be the same as the others in his class. He knows the script and he can tell you about his heart condition and frequently chooses this as his show and tell topic! He can tell you that he can’t weight bare with his arms but then runs off to try to climb or do yoga poses so he has to have 1:1 to keep him safe!  He is also physically small for his age compared to his same-aged peers.  

Although we are now special guardians, we are applying to adopt him because it has become very clear that he needs us to do that for his security and identity and to progress in his mental health and future resilience.  It is impossible to leave him with anyone who does not know him well because of the complexity of his needs but we need the respite because he is exhausting to be with due to his emotional needs arising from his attachment disorder.

 He does have a short attention span, he is easily distracted, he doesn’t finish things, he is disorganised, he fidgets and fiddles, he talks too much and can’t wait his turn. His behaviour disrupts his life and well being. He is impulsive. There is evidence that this occurs in all settings and with all people. He cannot inhibit it. Both at school and at home the behaviours are well managed but if you take away his 1:1 support his behaviour quickly becomes life threatening and dangerous to him and others.  He is very active for a child with such a severe heart condition.

 He attends an outstanding Primary School with a fantastic Head Teacher, but it is a large busy school and there are many occasions when we consider that they feel he is just too much trouble and his original statement was not ever fully implemented. When he started there we were told that he was achieving at an average level for his peer group for reading, spelling and comprehension and at a below average level for writing, speaking and listening. We sought a review and a statutory re-assessment in order to increase the provision in his statement to include learning objectives and help with literacy and numeracy. We did not expect the County Resourcing Panel to strip out the provision which was and continues to be appropriate from the original statement including an Occupational Therapy programme and Clinical Psychology oversight of his behaviour programme.  He does not appear to have made very much if any measurable progress in his National Curriculum levels between January 2011 and February 2012.

 If he only had his heart condition he may not even need a statement. It is not his heart condition that is stopping him from learning and behaving normally. It is the combination of the heart condition with hyperkinesis which mask eachother, whatever their respective causes and overarching both of these are his severe and complex mental health needs (anxiety and attachment disorder) for which he needs and receives weekly psychotherapy from CAMHS. My husband and I wish with all our whole hearts that this was not the case but it is.

The LA questioning these diagnoses does not make us doubt them at all but it does make us question the motivation of the LA in so doing.  We and our expert witnesses were questioned for 6 hours.  We now await the judgement of the panel as to what they believe they can order to be in his statement as an educational need. 

A recent Freedom for Information search has revealed that Cambridgeshire County Council has paid £3500 in legal fees in each of 7 cases this year where parents have appealed against the contents of a statement of SEN for their child.  If you add this to the cost to the public purse of the Expert Tribunal Panel, the administration and court fee which is likely to be another £3000 is the cost really justified? In our case the extra provision we were asking to be included in the statement would at most have cost the LA an additional £420-£450 a year as most of it is either already provided or provided free by the NHS.   

I am lucky that I have expert witness colleagues who supported me pro bono as did Inez Brown of Harrison Clark Solicitors.  Most families do not.  Some families are eligible for Legal Help.  Most are not.  In Cambridgeshire it would appear that if you are articulate parents who have a higher degree the LA will resist your appeal with solicitors even if your requests are reasonable and supported by all the professionals who work with your child on a daily basis.  I would really like to know why the LA officers do not negotiate with parents directly and provide what the child needs as I thought that was their job. 

Without expensive experts and solicitors or barristers parents have to represent themselves at the cost of many sleepless nights and the stress of appearing in a Magistrates Court.  The LA rely upon the fact that most parents do not have the skills, resilience or resources to use this appeal process and achieve the education that children with disabilities need to access the curriculum and stand any chance of achieving academically or in life. 

This is the reason that last year I wrote ‘Towards a Positive Future: stories, ideas and inspirtation from children with special educational needs, their families and professionals’ published by J & R Press and the second conference of the same name is happening on Saturday 16th June 2012 at Arlington Arts Centre, Mary Hare School, Newbury, Berkshire http://www.wordswell.co.uk/tapf-conference-2012/

It may also help Tribunal Panel Chairs and Lay Members get an insight as to the effects of their decisions on children and their families.

Please join Jane Asher, President of the National Autistic Society, and I, share your story and find the support and information you need to support your child and navigate this system and the new one being proposed.  Tickets cost £45 for parents and £90 for professionals.

One of the sponsors of TaPF2012 Conference, Field Fisher Waterhouse Solicitors, are generously providing bursaries of 50-100% of the delegate fee to enable parents of children to attend.  Early bird rates for bookings made before the 30th April 2012 are £96 per delegate including VAT or £180 for 2 delegates booking together.  This includes all refreshments and a delegate pack. 

I am organising this year’s conference.  The 4 keynote speakers at this years conference are Clive Rawlings, Barrister speaking on the future for children with SEN from a legal perspective, Tania Tirraoro, a journalist and parent (Special Needs Jungle) speaking on the SE7 pathfinder and experiences of the system as a parent, Charlie Mead, Educational Psychologist speaking on ‘The Careless System’ and Martyn Sibley, social entrepreneur speaking on what it was like growing up as a child with special needs with one aim ‘to change the world for disabled people.’ 

Jane Asher, Actress, Author and President of the National Autistic Society is coming and there are 12 seminars covering dyslexia, acquired brain injury, autism, deafness and Down Syndrome as well as influencing and communication skills, life after school, the ICAN Secondary Talk Programme,  Applied Behavioural Analysis and the SCAEP Social Skills Programme.  The focus as always is whatever the political context what do we know works and how can we navigatge the system and enable our children to get the support that they need so that they have a positive future.

To book your place go to http://www.wordswell.co.uk/tapf-conference-2012/booking.php

This book is essential reading for anyone currently involved in the upbringing and education of a child or children with special needs. In this well documented and skillfully edited volume, our current process for ensuring a ‘special’ child is appropriately educated is clearly and comprehensively explained. 15 real life stories of special needs children illustrate perfectly the many facets of the problems that face those who are intimately involved with educating children with special needs. We have all known the frustration and coldness of bureaucrats who count the pennies and tick the boxes with scant regard for the identity and needs of the individual’s life they are affecting. The personal accounts in this book bring home the difficulties many have experienced in understanding exactly what was wrong with their child, what effective and positive steps could have been or were taken to address their child’s needs and how these were (or were not) applied (promptly or otherwise). No punches are pulled. There is no kowtowing to those authoritative officials who have learned to become more efficient in their job by making hard and fast decisions that have ignored the human, emotional needs of the people involved. Reading such stories should give new heart to people who may be struggling to cope with a cumbersome, and seemingly cold and indifferent system. They are not alone. I write not as an entirely uninvolved individual, for I have had my own 19-year battle with authorities in seeing to the needs of my husband who has had increased requisites as his health has deteriorated and I have been observing the difficulties my own daughter has been having with her severely disabled child. To return to this excellent book: by way of essential contrast, it also highlights the positive side of the children’s achievements, no matter how small. It makes clear how it is important for us to change our attitudes in dealing with our children’s individual impairments and with the authorities that seem to be at odds with their statutory role to support these needy children. The final mission statements exhorting us to be the instigators of positive reform in this field are inspiring and worthy of adopting. It is not ‘the system’ but ‘we’ who can effectively improve matters. Armed with the expert knowledge and lists of supportive organizations and people in this book, and driven by our passionate involvement, we should be able to ensure that the future of our special needs children will be much improved.

Written by Dr Rosemary Westwell PhD, MA TESOL, MA Ed, B Mus, BA Hons

PhD thesis “The development of language acquisition in a mature learner” : http://eprints.ioe.ac.uk/48/

www.reviewsrjw.wordpress.com

www.elyforlanguage.wordpress.com

As an SLT working both for the NHS, Privately and for a major Charity I must say a huge thank you for all the time you have invested writing this book.

Put simply it’s a fantastic reference point for any professional working with children and adolescents with SEN and their families.

I like how the vastly complicated process of statementing is clearly described in terms of not simply what happens but when it should happen. When I was a newly qualified SLT I wish I had such a resource to refer back to as it has taken years of experience to get my head around (and I still don’t feel overly confident). I will definitely recommend this resource to NQT (and experienced) professionals who work with children with SEN.

Whilst the book does not expect a particular level of prior understanding of SEN having some certainly helps. The majority of (affected) families greet having more information on the SEN ‘with open arms’ however I do feel that due to the complexity of the process, and hence the complexity of the book itself, it is not accessible to all families. Personally I would recommend reading particular chapters to some of my families and the whole book to others.

I think the icing of the cake are the inspirational stories. Whilst they are heart breaking at points, the positive messages found are clear. I like the way they are categorised into SLCN diagnoses/disorders as it helps the reader to relate to particular children they know.

Finally, with all the cuts and changes happening across the UK it is very easy to become disillusioned; the ‘making it happen’ has lit my fire of enthusiasm and I can’t wait to go into work tomorrow and begin to make a difference!

by Chris Wade