General Chat

Oh Dawn I do hope you get it sorted but you will have to stand up to them I'm afraid. My cousin has 2 daughters who were both struggling at primary school. She eventually got them both statemented - both were dyslexic. One is now at University and the other is eagerly waiting for her A Level results (or whatever they're called these days!). I wish you all the luck in the world. Debby

It may not be easy for you Dawn, but you are doing it. I am so proud of you, we all started out being a little afraid. As you get older and you realize how hard you have to fight for your children, you get so good at it. It will become easier. Good girl, you have done a good job. Keep us informed, I feel I know him now so will be worrying!! Deanna.X........ got to have a worry! :-D)

Dawn I know how you feel. I have been trying to get my son assessed for Aspersers since he was 2 years old, he is 7 now. He will be assessed in November by the Autistic spectrum. It has taken a lot of pushing from us (for which I have found to be very hard to do most of the time) I am having the worst week ever with his mood swings but we will get there in the end. good luck and keep pushing! take care Julia

Have read your threads and sympathise. You have every right to have your child assessed and if necessary 'statemented'. Having worked in a special school for 25 years I have seen first hand what a difference special education can make to a child. I know you are finding this difficult, but stick to your guns. I have seen people in your position many times, but believe me, the bigger a nuisance you make of yourself the better you will get on. Present yourself at your local education office and demand action now - not in the distant future. Your local Education Authority are duty bound to provide 'suitable education' for your child which at the moment they do not appear to be doing. Do not be put off. They will put the wheels in motion if they think you will pull your child out of school altogether until something is done. I hope you resolve this situation in the near future.

I can emphasise. My son now 25 is autistic. Even though he is more severely affected than your son it took until he was 16 to get an accurate diagnosis. Then psychiatrists were reluctant to label children - we had code such as social interaction problems and language delay. Has your son had a hearing test - it is always a good idea to rule out hearing difficulties. The national autistic society has a range of very good leaflets giving advice to parents on ways to help overcome some of the problems. Even if your son is not on the autistic spectrum some of the ideas might help. For anyone with an interest in autism I can recomment Tony Attwood's website. He is a British psychologist working at the university of Sydney and has written the best book on Asperger's syndrome I have come across. Was your son a premature baby?

Dawn Thanks for keeping us updated. As someone who works in a primary school with special needs children, I know that speech therapists/educational psychologists are in very short supply and very high demand, which is why it sometimes takes a long time to get any action. Keep pushing, and we will be here to support you. nell

Hello Dawn, I've only just looked at this board so forgive me for being one of the late comers!! recently on local TV News a technique was featured in regard to a local child who had suffered from fitting .from which she had nearly died and was left with severe brain damage. A centre in South of England has treating her and also autistic, cerebral palsy children etc. with dramatic results. It is Government recognised treatment so not anything weird!! www.advancecentre(.)org(.)uk remove brackets regards Jane