[senco-forum] (no subject)

June, 

Fortunately I was not left to defend myself alone. The Senco, I, my line
manager, and the head of the Psychology Service were all subject to the high
level of complaints from this parent.

It went on for so long because parents complaints are investigated then
responded to. Each time you thought one issue had been sorted he would raise
another one. Step dad had clearly researched the law etc in minute detail
and used it to just shower a rain of constant letters. He complained about
what days the child had his support lessons right up to the type of
assessment material being used by the Ed Psychs. 

In the end, on the advice of my line manager, I just informed him that I
considered his complaints to be unjustified and I would no longer respond to
his letters in person. I would refer them on to the LEA. What he then did
then was to contact me via the Senco, asking for details of this, or that,
complaining via her so she would have to come and ask me for answers etc.

Regarding the reference to the term step dad…. I’ve already explained that
the only reason I raised the point that he was step dad was to point out
there was no hereditary link to any slow processing speed between the boy
and the “parents” as suggested by Alyson. So yes it was relevant to the
point. I knew the “parent” didn’t have slow processing because he wasn’t a
blood relative.

Yes. There were indicators that suggested he preferred being known as step
dad to this particular child. 

Here we go political correctness again. ……... I may be thick but what is
wrong with the term step dad??? ……. There is nothing disrespectful in that
term. … unless you know something I haven’t heard yet……. Should I refer to
him as the father given the real father is around??? I don’t think so.   If
you want to be so precise I shouldn’t actually call him parent either. What
is the terminology for someone who is the non legal partner of Mum?  What
relationship are they to the child? I may be wrong but I don’t think there
is an official term for this? 

I call him step dad simply because that was how he always called himself.
Obviously I referred to him by his name in work or outside the forum.  Had
he referred to himself as the child’s Postman Pat I guess I would have
called him that!! Is it relevant that I refer to Mum as Mum if it had been
her doing all the complaining??? Oh dear now am I being prejudiced against
Mum’s!!! I expect if Mum had been step mum and that was how she referred to
herself, I would call her that also. 

My personal views on Motives are as follows June,

I had a couple of views.

 1. It was almost an obsessive style of behaviour.  In the last email I gave
a personal view that Munchausen’s syndrome by proxy had crossed my mind. I
felt that the parent almost needed the attention for himself. 

2. The other possible “motive” was that he was continually looking for areas
where he could claim the LEA was negligent so that he could go down the
litigation line. There were other indicators that they sought some financial
gain that I can’t go into here.

Yes, June you’ll have to base your opinions of me by the way you personally
interpret my written word. That’s what we all have to do with each other in
the forum. As we are all humans we all perceive what we see and read in our
own individual ways.

Even doing this I warn you to air on the side of caution…… I once wrote a
note to a colleague. I wrote the brief information she needs and at the
bottom of the note put the word “ok?” Meaning is that ok? She interpreted
that one word as me being aggressive and “shouting” at her…. that better be
ok!!!

Interesting reaction ehh?

You’ll have to excuse my terseness. I’m having sleepless nights texting my
son trying to settle the very emotional, dyslexic and stressed out young man
into University.

The school I’m at is being inspected very shortly and everyone around me is
panicking and I am feeling rather tired!! 

Cheers

Sheridan

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