Dear all
I just want to test the waters with this one. My 6 year old son is in mainstream school with an EHCP and 1:1. He has profound sensory issues and when dysregulated can bite done on hard objects. This rarely happens and has not happened in school until last week, when he bit down on an ipad. The response of school is to invoice us for the cost of replacing. Is this reasonable. To me it feels inherently unfair as the damage was not intentional and a direct result of his dysregulation. Furthermore I do not have an understanding of what happened before to lead to this outcome??
I have told the school that I think an investigation of what happened should be there immediate course of action rather than asking for money. They disagree.
Any thoughts welcome..
Thank you
That's a debatable issue. Schools have a huge lack of funding at the moment so they are not going to be wanting to pay out for every broken iPad. It may not have been intentional but there is no doubt the iPad was broken by your son. I'm not sure fair would be the word I'd use but I think the school are well within their rights to ask for the money. It is hard as your son obviously didn't do it to break the iPad. Could he be given a hard chew and taught he can bite down on that but not other objects?
Thank you it is good to hear other peoples views
Hi there. I'd be interested to know if this is standard school policy and is advertised as such. If it is, then it's the same for all children within the school then unfortunately it looks like you may have to pay to replace it. If not then they are not fair to make you pay. How can it be classed as unbiased and fair if not?
Hope that makes sense
Hi as others have said check school policy on student breakages. I know at our school it is discretionary so if a genuine accident then parents don't get billed but if the school feel behaviour was to blame we do. I can see why the school are billing you as in black and white he bit it and broke it, that said as he has 1:1 support it should not have got to the point that he was so disregulated that he did it
I think asking the school to investigate what happened is reasonable even if it's to stop it happening again, and if it turns out it could have been prevented then I think you have grounds to argue maybe suggest 50/50 split? Just an idea good luck
I’m pretty sure that the school would have insurance to cover the cost of replacement, breakages happen in schools. And yes it does sound a bit unfair if it was as a result of his disability
The answer to this is yes.
There are times when I believe that if the cost of damage to public sector property is not paid then it can be slapped onto income tax or benefits.
You wouldn't believe how many expensive medical devices are damaged by patients in hospitals, and under (outdated?) NHS policy it's the taxpayer who pays to repair the damage rather than the patient.
BTW. I don't pay charges for parking tickets issued by councils, APCOA etc. or take any notice of letters issued by debt collectors or fake solicitors on their behalf.
I would take it to the heart. I would sit down quietly and meditate on it. I would ask my heart, what is the most peaceful, the most loving and the kindest response that I can give to this. The school have an iPad that needs replacing or repairing. I would ask my heart, what is the most peaceful response I can give. Then I would follow what my heart dictated, without question. I wouldn’t allow myself to get into a dispute in my mind about whether this is the right or the wrong action to take. I trust that my heart always takes right action in that it’s the path of peace and non resistance.
Whatever method you use to help you come to your decision about this, trust it, and see what happens. We are only responsible for what we do or say, so as soon as you’ve made your decision, and you’ve carried out the action, let it go.
What do you want to achieve? My objective is to always maintain a level of peace, forgiveness and gratitude etc, so I can measure my actions or decisions against them. Would my decision bring these things to me? If not, I make a different choice.
You can also kindly request to read their policy on broken things. And if you feel like giving them an explanation, just tell them that you always like to read the small print, that it’s just you’re way, it helps keep the mind balanced. You don’t have to fall out with them. This is a perfectly reasonable request, and it’s not wise to hand money over to anybody without reading the small print. And if it turns out you are responsible and/or you agree to pay, you also have the option of paying at a level that’s acceptable to you.
You could also ask to look at their insurance policy and you can look at your own, you might be covered there somehow. It’s up to you how you approach this. As you suggested, it’s reasonable to ask for a full explanation of what happened, leading up to it etc, none the least so they can try to avoid a repeat etc, but also to justify their request. My way is to go to my heart, because I like a harmonious stress free life and reading documents etc and dealing with this stuff stresses me out, but that’s not to say my heart would necessarily say pay, and if it didn’t, I would follow its direction. But at all times I would maintain a friendly relationship with the school and remember that you both have equally valid voices in this. And above all else, to you even have the money to pay for it? There are many considerations to consider. I hope writing about it and reading other people’s view points etc will help you come to a satisfactory decision. Good luck
I would imagine the school is probably trying to avoid having to use their insurance policy as a) it would take a long time and there would be a lot of paperwork involved b) they may have to pay an excess which possibly isn't worth it for 1 iPad c) it may not be covered under accidental damage even though it was not done on purpose. Insurance companies are not well known for wanting to pay out. I agree it may not seem fair when it is not the child's fault but I can see why the school would do this.
Fair enough
No problem. I work in a school so I can see it from their point of view. Having said that. I would question whether the school have understood that this is a need to bite down as opposed to a temper tantrum as there is a big difference between those scenarios. I don't think it'd make much difference as to whether you had to pay for it. But I don't think it's important the school have understood that.