Hi there, I wonder if people can share with me their experience and advice?
I have a 7 year old who was diagnosed at 3 yrs with HFA, he also has hyper mobility Syndrome.
He has moderate DLA, and we have managed to work with his local primary to keep him in mainstream. He is known to Paed community services but not monitored by them as he has had no issues, and he is known to the SENCO teacher covering the school.
However, as he has got older the gap between himself and his peers socially is growing. He is very bright, a year to 18 months in advance of his peers in most subjects, but recently he has required ear defenders and his own desk to cope with auditory overstimulation, he also started making involuntary noises whilst processing thoughts and Conversations.
he does not like crowds, assembly times, or strangers, often reverting to making clicks / sounds and strimming.
We met with SENCO today as they are trying various coping mechanisms in class and difficult situations, the primary he is in has only 20-22 per class and a head who has an a son with sapergers, so a great environment.
My concern now is there will likely be a time where he will need more intervention, and as secondary school looms in the next 3-4 years what we will do, none of the local schools have less than 1,800-2,000 pupils and class sizes of 35 and the senco says support is non existent without EHC's.
The SENCO said today the local authority will not give and EHC as he is Bright and meeting his yearly milestones accademically, also as we have also been coping without community paeds, OHC, or SLT we have no history to base our case on.
To some degree the primary are so good and putting lots of things in place to help, he doesn't need an EHC there, but in a few years we will need help as he moves to secondary. There is one school relatively nearby under the same LHA that is geared more towards his needs, class sizes of 25, vocational as well as pure education, they also are very strict and follow rigorous timetables that will help with his structure and need for routines.
However we are not in their catchment area and the senco said if there was a EHC she would happily campaign for that school on his EHC as it would be very beneficial for him, she agrees he will not likely cope in a mainstream large secondary.
So what do we do? there seems to be a void where HFA kids cannot get support via an EHC as they are bright and the LHA won't give them one, social issues don't seem to be important to them. Without an EHC getting him into an appropriate school will mean us physically moving next door to the school, if we can't do that he may end up in a school he can't cope in and be pulled out of mainstream?
What have others done, is there any provision with EHC for behavioural / social side of HFA, or is it as senco said, because he is bright he will never help?
thanks in advance