Accessing the right type of education is often a challenge for adopted children, particularly if they have complex needs. An education, health and care plan (EHCP) is designed to support children with special educational needs so they can access the right type of help to enable them to learn.
Unfortunately, many adopters find the process of getting the assessment and the right plan in place is extremely stressful and drawn out, causing further delay to many children accessing the right type of education in the best setting for them. In this article, adopter Christina shares her family’s experience.
The realities of applying for an EHCP
Our daughter was nearly four-and-a-half years old when she came to live with us. Due to her complex needs, she went into nursery quite early on during foster care to allow the foster carer some respite. She required 1-1 care at all times as she was unable to walk, talk and was tube fed, amongst many other behaviours that required support. Emergency funding was sought, and the local authority, as her corporate parent, applied for her EHCP.
Although we had a lot of experience with complex needs, we had not really dealt with the education side, so the EHCP process was very new to us. We didn’t know anything about the EHCP being in progress until we were invited to look through the draft document.
The process was very quick compared to a standard EHCP application, and an educational psychologist came to our home within days of our daughter moving in. I assume this is because at that stage, she was a looked-after child, vs a standard application. It was decided that she would go to a mainstream school, ideally one with a specialist unit and a full-time 1-1. These took some time to get in place, but she started school a month later than her peers, for an hour a day.
Lack of information
We had no information on what should have been in the EHCP, and it was signed off by the LA as her ‘parents’. We didn’t see any of the reports provided, including the educational psychologist’s report. Just last year (six years on), we did finally manage to get our hands on this report, and we learnt that if some of the recommendations in it had been included in the EHCP around her trauma in an education setting, then her time at school could have looked very different. Sadly, this is just another example of our daughter being let down by the local authority, which should have been there to support her.
Finding the right educational setting
Our daughter remained in mainstream school for the next few years, barely moving past a part-time schedule, isolated in rooms alone with her 1-1, unable to access any of the curriculum, and medical needs, as well as many other needs not being met. Eventually, in Year 3, the school finally agreed they could not meet her needs. Fortunately, the local authority very quickly agreed that she needed specialist provision in the form of a special school. We thought that the difficult part was done, but sadly, this was to come.
For the next 18 months, we had to overcome every barrier possible in trying to find a suitable special school. We begged and pleaded with schools to give her a chance, but time and time again, we were hit with her needs are too broad and complex, we can’t keep her safe, we just don’t have the staff to support that level of 1-1 in this environment.
We eventually hit a jackpot. An independent special school that specialises in trauma and attachment. It wasn’t a perfect fit, and there would be some obstacles to overcome in terms of physical needs, but they were willing to try, and that was important to us.
Further delays
The local authority did not want to pay the price of this special school, so it continued to consult with schools in other counties for a long time, getting similar responses. Eventually, the local authority gave in and asked the independent school to take her on. But 18 months had passed, and this school now had a new headteacher, many changes had been made, and they did not believe they could meet her needs any longer.
During this time, I had to make 5 different complaints to the local authority for poor communication, failure to provide an adequate education. These complaints were upheld by the local government ombudsman and compensation offered, but this didn’t get my daughter an education. It didn’t find her a school.
Education other than at school
After this extremely long and stressful 18 months, the school-based trauma was higher than ever, and I told the local authority no more. I demanded a package of EOTAS (education other than at school), and it was agreed. She left school a few days later.
EOTAS is not what we wanted for our daughter, and it certainly didn’t seem like it would be best for our family, considering the difficult and complex behaviours we had to manage on a daily basis. She started at an alternative provision for 3 hours a week, and the local authority refused to offer any more than this.
So, for 5 months she received 3 hours a week ofeducation, with a journey of 1.5 hours each way to get there. I had to attend the provision for 9 months with her because cross-county difficulties meant that nursing teams would not train the staff, and the local authority refused to pay an independent company. Eventually, after 5 months and a lot of fighting, we got a personal budget for a basic education package put in place.
Fighting for her education
Things changed dramatically at home very quickly. Difficult behaviours began to improve. Don’t get me wrong, they were still very much present, but so much more manageable! She began engaging better in her post-adoption therapies, and just generally became so much happier. I started to think that maybe this would work after all!
It has been 2.5 years since we embarked on our EOTAS journey, and it has been anything but plain sailing! The local authority has no intention of these children receiving a full-time education, they are offered the bare minimum and you are led to believe you should be grateful for what’s offered.
Every single annual review is a fight to keep education in place, leading to endless formal complaints and local government ombudsman investigations. I provide the majority of the education, despite laws saying a parent should not be expected to educate their EOTAS child. She receives 9 hours a week at an alternative provision, and a small personal budget. She does not get a full time education and each week I have to drive 15 plus hours to provisions that last for as little as an hour at a time.
However, we do this because it makes our daughter happy, and we absolutely love this extra time we have with her.
Advice to parents
My advice to parents would be to apply for the EHCP as early as possible and if school will not support it, do a parental application.
Appeal, appeal, appeal. If the plan is not right, appeal this decision and keep taking it further. Push to get funded reports from as many people as possible. If you have evidence of sensory or speech and language needs etc, push for an assessment of these for the EHCP.
Find your people, whether they are local, on Facebook groups, wherever you find them, they will be the most amazing support network for you.
Keep battling until you get exactly what your child needs. You know your child better than anyone. It soul destroying the amount we have to fight for our children, but we have to battle through and keep fighting. Your child’s future depends on you getting them the right level of support and provision in place. I would advise parents and carers not to wait, and to apply for the EHCP as early as possible.
Head to the homepage to read the latest articles about adoption, parenting and more.
