Some autistic children can attend mainstream schools and colleges with a small amount additional support, make good progress and enjoy school or college life (most of the time!)

However, for many autistic children and YP, this is not the case. The demands of the school or college environment can negatively impact on their learning, relationships and overall well-being.

Where children who have special educational needs (SEN) are not making progress (in learning, in the development of communication skills, socially or emotionally), schools and colleges will put additional support in place; this is SEN Support. You will have been informed that your child is receiving SEN Support and you will have been meeting with your child’s class teacher, tutor or SENCo regularly to plan and review the effectiveness of the SEN support in place for your child.

Sometimes, despite SEN Support, your child may not make good progress in learning and/or may be struggling socially and emotionally.

At this point, working with you and your child, we can provide advice and guidance that your child’s school or college will find helpful and informative so that the SEN Support in place can be further developed. This work could include:

• Discussion with you and where possible, your child.

• Review of any professional assessment reports and recommendations.

• Observation of your child in a range of settings where possible.

• Attendance of school meetings with you.

• Recommendation of strategies to support your child at home around school or separation anxiety.

• Production of written reports and recommendations for the strategies, approaches or interventions to support your child in school.

For children and young people: Understanding myself

Supporting your child to understand how autism may be impacting on how they are experiencing the world and support them to develop strategies that will enable them to live the life they choose as they work towards achieving their hopes and aspirations.

Support for brothers and sisters

Supporting siblings (including your child with Autism); to develop and maintain a positive relationship through mutual understanding of each other’s needs and boundaries.

Support for parents

Listening to your concerns and worries about how to help your autistic child now and support you to plan for their future. Once we get to know about your family and your child, we can provide advice and guidance on strategies that will help your child to feel comfortable and calm at home and out and about.

Some children with SEN require special educational provision that is greater or more specialist than that which can be provided by their school through ‘normally available resources’. Where this is the case, either the school, parent or young person can request that the Local Authority carry out an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment to decide whether an EHC plan should be made for the child or young person.

If you are thinking about requesting that the Local Authority carry out an EHC needs assessment, we can support you with this by:

• Reviewing the actions taken by your child’s school or education provider to meet their special educational needs.

• Reviewing any diagnostic reports relating to your child’s SEN and advise the school of any recommendations made that are yet to be implemented.

• Supporting you to complete your request for EHC needs assessment and provide sufficient supporting evidence.

• Monitor the progress of your request through the statutory process.

• Advise on provision required and/or suitable school placement for your child.

• Liaise with the Local Authority on your behalf.

• Review the Draft EHC plan.

• Support you with an appeal to the First Tier SEND Tribunal (SENDIST) if needed.

Annual reviews of your child’s EHC plan, including requests for a change of placement:

• Review of all documentation in preparation for the Annual review meeting

• Attend the Annual review meeting

• Monitoring the progress of the annual review process

• Reviewing and making recommendations regarding any draft amended EHC plan

• Supporting you with an appeal to the First Tier SEND Tribunal (SENDIST)

• Support to complete appeal paperwork and to lodge the appeal

• Be your appointed representative/advocate

• Provide written reports and recommendations regarding SEN provision for your child.

We can provide support and guidance on navigating the transition from child to adult services, including advice regarding social care needs assessments and funded packages of support for independence.