This account of event comes form a parent who is disabled themselves and has had to constantly challenge various professionals from both the NHS and LA (Local Authority) due to services not communicating with one another and making decisions based on finance and convenience over the needs of the child. East Riding council have shown that their knowledge of the SEND Code of Practise 2014 is almost none existent as well as Gaslighting* the parent , ignoring legislation along with parents wishes and neglecting the best interests of the child:
"My child was approved for a needs assessment in December 2021 and the parent, setting and paediatrician all said sensory challenges and communication difficulties were a challenge.
Parent made a reasonable request for an occupational therapist assessment to be done as part of the EHCPna (Education, health and care needs assessment) on top of the Ed Psych and SALT (Speech and Language Therapist) assessments. No social care assessment was sort by the Local Authority even though there was clear evidence of a social care assessment needed due to the child being non-verbal and the parent/carer being a single parent.
OT (Occupational Therapist) assessment was ignored by the ECHO who said one "couldn't be done." When they were challenged and told this was a safeguarding issues due to the child having Pica**, they said it was their policy that the setting do a request for the "SEND panel." It was then said during a meeting that the setting "should have done this when they first had my child in their setting" even though we were all told two weeks earlier by the Area SENco that the form for the assessment didn't exist for the early years.
Assessments by SALT and Ed Psych were not done in person, with the setting flagging in numerous meetings that there was concern at the validity of the assessments that were done. This was not actioned until mediation when parent requested it as an action.
Local Authority and CCG/NHS will not "agree" Makaton as a way for child to learn how to communicate, against the wishes of the parent, setting and a private SALT. It is apparently not their policy to use Makaton because they would have to pay "licensing fees" to teach it. This is putting money before the needs of a disabled child. Further, SALT (NHS) has only met with child a handful of times during two years and so it is questioned whether its viewpoint is appropriate as it is outdated.
EHCPs are poorly written and do not include specific provision. Failure to match Section B with Section F and there was a real effort to put parent off a specialist school or defer in favour of a mainstream school. This is not what the child needs and the Local Authority is currently arguing "transportation costs" as a reason for the child not to attend the parent requested school; the school said no to consultation as it was done for September 2022 rather than September 2023.
We are awaiting Tier 1 Tribunal and I have had to take on private paid help to get through the process as I am disabled myself.
NHS and LA do not communicate with each other, which affects disabled children directly. On September 1 2022, a rule has come in that only over 5s can access the continence service provided by the NHS, but this has not been communicated to the 0-25 SEND Team or parents or disabled children via the Local Offer. This means that any child that turned 4 in August 2022 is potentially going to miss out on a year of support for incontinence, potentially meaning they'll be unsupported at school.
The East Riding has no tangible knowledge of the SEND Regulations 2014, or their responsibility to disabled children. It does not communicate with the NHS/CCG and the same with the CCG. It puts policy before the law to save itself money. It is failing children across all age groups without accountability."
*Gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse in which a person or group causes someone to question their own sanity, memories, or perception of reality. People who experience gaslighting may feel confused, anxious, or as though they cannot trust themselves.
** Pica is an eating disorder that involves eating items that are not typically thought of as food and that do not contain significant nutritional value, such as hair, dirt, soil and paint chips etc.
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