Some parents of autistic children experience difficulties when dealing with schools in terms of getting the right support for their child.
Ordinarily Available Provision
All mainstream schools and early years settings are expected to provide support for children and young people with special educational needs. Needs include
- cognition and learning
- communication and interaction
- social, emotional and mental health
- sensory and physical needs.
Find out more about Ordinarily Available Provision here.
If you are having difficulty getting your child’s needs supported in school here are the local and national support services that can help you.
Local education help
SEND & You (formerly known as Supportive Parents)
An independent organisation offering a free confidential and impartial service to any parent who has a concern about their child’s education. Their service offers:
- Information & Support Line on 01179 897725 open 10am – 2pm, Monday, Wednesday and Friday during term time only (answerphone at all other times)
- Help with paperwork and preparation for meetings
- Monthly support group meetings and termly newsletter
- Free parent courses designed to give an overview of relevant Education policies and specific information relating to SEN provision
- Courses aimed at SENCOs, school governors and trainee Educational Psychologists
Telephone: 01179 897725
Email: support@sendandyou.org
Click to visit website
The Bristol Autism Team
Bristol Autism Team is a council-run team supports children and young people with Autism in Bristol mainstream schools from reception until the end of secondary school. To learn more about the service they provide, visit the Bristol Local Offer website.
Email: Bristol.Autism.HotLine@bristol.gov.uk
Katie Steeds
“With my experience and specialist skills using TEACCH, Pecs, visual systems, social stories and intensive interaction. I can provide strategies and interventions designed around your child, which all the family can follow. With your involvement I will develop a bespoke individual plan designed around your child’s communication, social, play and sensory needs.”
Telephone: 07979 494588
Email: katie@katiesteeds.co.uk
Visit Katie’s website
Global Mediation
Global Mediation offers a disagreement resolution service for parents who are not able to reach agreement with their local authority about their child’s special education needs.
Telephone: 0208 441 1355
Email: info@globalmediation.co.uk
Click to visit their website
Portage and Home Visiting Service
The Early Years Portage and Home Visiting Service provide support to families and early years practitioners for children from birth to five years, who are disabled and/or have special educational needs. Portage is not available to children who have a nursery place, as it is felt the two offer similar learning support.
Telephone: 01173 773235
Click to visit website
SEND Advocacy
Alice Marshment supports parents and carers through various SEND issues including EHCP reviews and appealing EHCP needs assessment and EHCP refusals.
Telephone: 07562 689577x
Click to visit website
Irwin Mitchell Solicitors
‘Our team of highly experienced education law solicitors is ready to help you address all aspects of your case. Much of our work is for clients who are denied access to education or their access to education is restricted.’ The webpage below has useful information as well as template letters you can use for various situations.
Telephone: 0808 274 3932
Click to visit website
Watkins Solicitors
A Bristol-based firm with expertise in dealing with SEND issues, particularly appeals and tribunals.
Telephone: 0117 939 0350
Click to visit website
Education Other Than at School (EOTAS)
EOTAS is for children in South Glos who are vulnerable to exclusion or are undergoing a formal assessment of Special Educational Needs and are without a school place.
Read more about EOTAS in South Gloucester
Hospital Education
Hospital Education is the Bristol equivalent to EOTAS and is designed to support young people who are unable to access mainstream education because of medical needs.
Read more about Hospital Education
Autism Toolkits
Bristol’s Local Offer website has several toolkits for school-age autistic children in the city.
Visit this page to see the list of toolkits
Click here for a list of all of the specialist schools in the West of England
National education help
Sunshine Support
Sunshine are an independent SEND support service. They also run excellent webinars and clinics.
Visit their website
Cerebra Accessing Public Services Toolkit
This toolkit can help you if “you are facing difficulties with official bodies in trying to access the health, social care and education support services you and your child are entitled to, our Accessing Public Services Toolkit can help. It identifies common issues and offers strategies to help resolve them without resorting to legal action.”
Visit this page to download the Accessing Public Services Toolkit
SENTAS (Special Education Needs Transport Advocacy Service)
SENTAS provide an invaluable service to parents and carers who have locked horns with their Local Authority over who will pay for their child’s transport to school. “We can help take away the stress and hassle of appealing Local Authorities decisions to get your child the service they are entitled to.”
Visit the SENTAS website
IPSEA
National charity IPSEA provides free and independent online resources to help resolve common issues with getting the right educational support for children and young people with all kinds of special educational needs and disabilities. They also run an Information Service, general advice helpline and tribunal helpline which provide a wide range of educational support and advice.
Advice helpline: 0800 018 4016
Tribunal helpline: 0845 602 9579
Click to visit website
SOS!SEN
A national charity aiming to empower parents and carers of children with SEN to successfully challenge the difficulties faced when battling for their children’s education rights. SOS!SEN offer a telephone helpline, five days per week during term time and information sheets on many topics. They also offer small ‘hands-on’ one-day workshops to help parents prepare appeals to the SEN Tribunal. These can be supplemented with one-to-one sessions. At the time of writing, they run monthly advice surgeries in Bristol.
Telephone: 0208 538 3731
Email: admin@sossen.org.uk
Click to visit website
National Autistic Society Education Helpline
The NAS have an excellent helpline dedicated to helping parents deal with education issues. Their Education Rights Service provides impartial, confidential information, advice and support on education rights and entitlements. It is for parents and carers of pre-school and school-age autistic children to help them get the educational support their child needs.
Helpline: 0808 800 4102
National Autistic Society School Exclusions Service
The NAS School Exclusions Service offers advice and information to parents of children and young people with autism on all aspects of school exclusion in England.
This includes advice on informal (illegal) exclusions; fixed-period and permanent exclusions; how to challenge your child’s exclusion and what you can do if you are concerned that your child is at risk of exclusion.
Sometimes, an autistic pupil trying to cope with school life can go into meltdown. The high volume of instructions and demands; the deluge of sensory stimuli and struggle to keep up with the flow of social interaction that comes naturally to those around them. All of that can prove too much and anxiety can build to stress and ultimately to aggression.
Headteachers may feel that exclusion is the only solution in order to maintain the safety and well-being of other pupils. Indeed, it may be the case that a mainstream school is not the most appropriate setting for a particular child. However, disruptive behaviour can be an indication of unmet needs and schools have a duty to make reasonable adjustments to policies and practices to ensure that autistic pupils also feel safe, confident and able to experience success.
To use the Exclusions Service:
- Call the NAS Autism Helpline on 0808 800 4104 (Monday-Thursday 10am-4pm and Friday 9am-3pm). The Helpline will take details of your query and arrange a telephone appointment for you with an Exclusions Adviser, who will call you back at the agreed time to discuss your query in detail.
- Email your enquiry to schoolexclusions@nas.org.uk. It would be helpful if you could provide as much detail as possible regarding your enquiry.
Special Needs Jungle
Special Needs Jungle is a blog that provides easy to understand resources, articles and information for parents and carers of children with special needs, disabilities and health conditions to better enable them to navigate the special needs system.
Click to visit website
See also: The Special Needs Jungle’s Guide to the DfE SEND Funding Consultation
Educational Equality
This organisation provides families with supportive, independent advice on all things to do with SEND. They can be reached online or over the phone.
Click to visit website
Telephone: 01980 677 235
Information about SEND issues from the Government:
Apply for school transport for your child
SEND: A Guide for Parents and Carers
SEND Code of Practice for Children 0-25
Ensuring a good education for children who cannot attend school because of health needs
View full list of Government SEND publications
See also:
How to get an EHCP yourself
Tips for dealing with professionals
Autism and SEND acronyms and definitions
Here is an excellent document with advice on university and college, created by the Bristol Autism Spectrum Service
Schools can access training through the Autism Education Trust – Find your local provider here.
