[senco-forum] tranfers

All of this refers to the school....................

Thanks for the clarification, Susie.

It's obvious that you've endeavoured to find the most effective and
equitable mechanism for deploying the resources available to you under your
LEA's matrix funding system.

That funding system is a vital adjunct to the LEA's policy of not specifying
or quantifying provision within statements.  It isn't, though, a legal
policy - so I'm not surprised that your LEA hasn't challenged you about the
in-school arrangements, which are probably a model to be held up in the
County.

It isn't fair to make a judgement based on one's own experience, but my
daughter would not have fared well under these arrangements - without
dedicated support she wouldn't have attended to as much lesson content; she
wouldn't have developed her social awareness and skills to the same level;
she wouldn't have developed her word processing and writing skills - skills
that she uses so copiously now.

As parents, we'd have had far more calls from the school reporting accidents
and falls, if there hadn't been dedicated support.

All of these were independence skills for life after school - the big part
of life.  Independence skills can be learned 'incidentally', just by being
in the right environment, but like most skills, they're best taught.  School
shouldn't be about learning to prepare for 'further up' school (it's much
more important than that).

'Tough Love' - "starting to become independent and not relying on one TA to
do everything for them" is an indictment of TA behaviour, rather than an
accurate description of how a TA's presence can impact on individual
learning needs.  I don't see it working well with ASD children, or some
other groups.

You might almost wonder - and I'm sure the LEA wants you to - why bother
with the statementing process at all, if its outcome is simply to award the
child a slightly different proportion of the global support resource.  So
what happens if next year your LEA announces that, because of financial
pressures (election coming up, want to keep Council Tax down) matrix funding
will have to be cut by 50%?  You have no comeback - and there is no
protection of the support resource for any child, included those who are
statemented.  I don't personally see this as an improvement on the current
legal requirement, despite your LEA's attempt to circumvent it.

If parents can see that non-dedicated support brings about positive outcomes
for their statemented child, they will have no qualms about agreeing to
'creative' interpretation of statement content in their child's best
interests.  But they should have the choice, not the LEA.

Regards

Biff

----- Original Message -----
From: "Susie Pinder" <sunshine at fish.co.uk>
To: "Biff Crabbe" <ba at biffc.vispa.com>; "senco forum"
<senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
Sent: Monday, May 29, 2006 7:09 PM
Subject: Re: [senco-forum] tranfers

> All of this refers to the school....................
>
> Our LEA provides a matrix funding and no hours are specified on the
> Statement.  Therefore no TA is employed for a named student so that when
> they leave the TA loses money.  All TAs are subject based and students
with
> statement are the first priority and then School Action plus.  School
Action
> is the responsibility of the Subject departments - we only get £140 per
> student whilst Primary get £350 ish.  From the funding I deduct 15% to
cover
> time liasing with dept staff, training, meetings, duties, worship time and
> form time.  The rest is divided by £12 (includes on costs) to give number
of
> hours a year of support and then divided by 39 for the number per week
>
> As the school does whole school target setting no need for additional
> targets.  Students who do Enhancement Groups get a Group Education Plan
> based on that specific area of development.  Students with Statements have
> an Education Support Plan which highlights areas of need and suggested
> strategies for staff.  I am increasing this for high level SA+.
>
> 'Tough Love' refers to the students starting to become independent and not
> relying on one TA to do everything for them.  How do you dedicate 3 TA
hours
> a week?  Likewise there are 16 other secondary schools in the Borough for
> parents to consider if they do not like what I offer.   So far I have not
> been challenged by the LEA and the SEN Tribunal has very favourably
> commented on the structure 3 times, even where parents have not challenged
> that part - it was LEA decisions that were being challenged.  It is also
> Tough Love for the parents who I do not expect to want to get weekly
> updates.  Some parents have been very protected and if it is their oldest
> one with high SEN they need informing of the usual way forward in a
> secondary school.  The parents don't sign anything, but.. they have in
> writing what I am offering.
>
> Hope this clarifies the position
>
> Susie
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Biff Crabbe" <ba at biffc.vispa.com>
> To: "Susie Pinder" <sunshine at fish.co.uk>; "senco forum"
> <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
> Sent: Monday, May 29, 2006 10:48 AM
> Subject: Re: [senco-forum] tranfers
>
>
> > Susie - I've read many of your postings before and have invariably seen
> > much
> > good sense in your approach to SEN.
> >
> > This posting, though, does prompt one or two more questions.
> >
> > When you write that 'you' don't provide 'dedicated' support and don't do
> > IEPs, do you mean 'you' or do you mean your school?  Does no 'dedicated'
> > support mean simply that you don't seek to 'attach' particular LSAs to
> > particular children (for example because LSAs are 'attached' to subject
> > departments) or is it a euphemism for something else?
> >
> > Does your LEA not have children whose statements suggest or specify
> > 'dedicated' support?
> >
> > "I call it Tough Love.  Whilst some parents have said this is not what
> > they
> > want they know they can look else where."
> >
> > I'm sure there's a difference between 'Tough Love' and 'Tough S**t', but
> > it's not blindingly obvious to me.
> >
> > "The parents know what I am offering and in asking for a place accept
that
> > deal."
> >
> > Do they sign something?
> >
> > Tell me I'm on the wrong track here Susie....
> >
> > Regards
> >
> > Biff Crabbe
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Susie Pinder" <sunshine at fish.co.uk>
> > To: "Elizabeth Margaret Haffenden" <Elizabeth.Haffenden at btinternet.com>;
> > "senco forum" <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
> > Sent: Sunday, May 28, 2006 6:49 PM
> > Subject: Re: [senco-forum] tranfers
> >
> >
> >> Receive the requests and then explain why this is not a good idea., as
> >> you
> >> have explained.
> >>
> >> This year we have a school whose 10 children can not come to the
Borough
> >> Induction day, mistake by their admin, so I agreed when the Head
alerted
> > me
> >> in November to do a morning for them.  I have now added the 18 children
> > who
> >> are the only one from their school and a few other vulnerable that I
know
> >> about, mainly statemented, LAC/ CP to make it 30.  This is before the
> >> Official Day so they will have some advantage over the others.
> >>
> >> Likewise - for yr 5 parents asking to view this term in order to make
> > their
> >> preference for their statmented child.  I offered one afternoon, sent
> >> details to ALL primary schools with details and a letter.  25 sets of
> >> parents turned up and some LEA bods.  I am going to do the same thing
> >> next
> >> year and blow what the LEA guidelines are about.
> >>
> >> The parents are selecting a main-stream school and for the majority of
> >> the
> >> time the students are in a main-stream class and I don't provide
> > 'dedicated'
> >> support.  Feedback so far good........ I also point out that there are
> > less
> >> meeting with teachers than in Primary and as I don't do IEPs there are
> >> not
> >> regular meetings with me - well I might not even teach the child.  I
call
> > it
> >> Tough Love.  Whilst some parents have said this is not what they want
> >> they
> >> know they can look else where.  The parents know what I am offering and
> >> in
> >> asking for a place accept that deal.
> >>
> >> Susie Pinder
> >> Learning Access Director
> >>
> >> ----- Original Message -----
> >> From: "Elizabeth Margaret Haffenden"
<Elizabeth.Haffenden at btinternet.com>
> >> To: "senco forum" <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
> >> Sent: Saturday, May 27, 2006 10:08 PM
> >> Subject: [senco-forum] tranfers
> >>
> >>
> >> We have had several primary schools approach us to organised special
> > visits
> >> for pupils who are coming to us in Year 7.  We are quite happy to
arrange
> >> this but many are now asking for the visiting Year 6 pupil with SEN to
be
> >> able to sit in on taught classes with Year 7 pupils.  We are not too
> >> happy
> >> about this as we feel it does not give a true experience of the Year 7
> >> experience and the Year 7's have been in secondary for school for
almost
> >> a
> >> year and are therefore more mature.    Do other schools receive similar
> >> requests and how do they feel about this.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> --
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26/05/2006
> >>
> >
>
>
>
> --
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