Proper Support For Children With Special Educational Needs Can Lead To Successful Outcomes | Letters

I person 2 children, some autistic. One does good successful mainstream school, pinch adaptations; nan different cannot past successful a mainstream situation astatine each – everything astir it triggers him.

Any curate who wants to do distant pinch typical acquisition needs and disabilities (Send) settings should beryllium required to time off their quiet agency and walk a week conducting their duties successful a engaged secondary schoolhouse (After disablement benefits, is Labour really astir to target nan acquisition authorities of typical needs children?, 7 July).

Every 55 minutes they must driblet what they are doing and move to a different room to activity connected a wholly different ministerial portfolio, sloppy of their liking successful aliases aptitude for it. A fewer times a week, they will beryllium required alteration for PE successful a room afloat of people.

Why is it truthful difficult for authorities to understand that “inclusion” does not mean “force everyone into a azygous model sloppy really unsuitable it is”? It intends understanding, respecting and acting appropriately, arsenic everyone has different needs.
Rachel Taylor
Lewes, East Sussex

The conflict to get an education, wellness and attraction scheme (EHCP) is not easy won. All excessively often it requires tenacity, resilience and nary mini measurement of assurance and accomplishment to discuss nan entreaty and tribunal process.

As a teacher, barrister and erstwhile typical of Independent Provider of Special Education Advice, nan starring kindness successful nan section of Send rule successful England, I cognize this from first-hand experience. My ain kid had analyzable aesculapian needs and I was astounded erstwhile my section authority said that they did not meet nan period (clearly defined successful nan Children and Families Act 2014). I appealed, successfully, but had to be a proceeding astatine a magistrates court.

I understand why section authorities are not supportive of EHCP applications; they cognize they do not person nan costs to meet nan plans. Watering down, aliases removing children’s authorities to support tin ne'er beryllium nan answer. Adequately funded Send support enables children to beryllium successful. My ain child, pinch a scheme successful spot passim secondary school, was capable to spell connected to execute a first‑class degree. I fearfulness that this mightiness not beryllium nan result for our adjacent procreation of children.
Susan Hailes
Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire

Your correspondents (Letters, 6 July) make a powerful lawsuit for nan request to support children pinch further acquisition needs, but I feel that they are mistaken successful trying to perpetuate nan existent use of EHCPs.

I was, for galore years, a politician of 2 secondary schools and witnessed nan problems pinch nan EHCP “system” pinch mounting despair. The processes person go truthful analyzable that they are almost inaccessible to parents who deficiency nan skills to navigate an administrative labyrinth, which discriminates against immoderate of nan neediest.

The clip taken to unafraid a scheme tin beryllium truthful prolonged that it is pointless for inferior schools to initiate a petition precocious successful nan child’s clip pinch them; nan secondary schoolhouse whitethorn struggle to support nan kid for their first twelvemonth and only get a scheme by nan extremity of year 8 – meaning that children astatine a important shape successful their schoolhouse life lack additional support for arsenic much as 3 years.

Any strategy pinch these features needs replacement, and I would impulse your readers to invited nan opportunity to execute this.
Dick Quibell
London