Growing up, news, advice & activities

Growing up, News, Advice & Activities 11th December 2016 Dear All We’re still without our phone, but hope to have sorted it out this week. Our workshop with Mark Brown was a great success…

The Batphone The Batphone is how we name the SEND Family Voices phone and number – unfortunately, due to a change of provider, the Batphone is still not working. We hope to have this finally fixed later this week. In the meantime, please use e-mail and ask your friends, family and colleagues to do the same.

Puberty and Sexuality – workshop Our two workshops on this subject appeared to be positive experiences for all that attended – and we’ve been asked to offer more in the future. Some of the themes that resonated for parents/carers are:  Research has shown that 33% of teenagers with autism experience epileptic seizures during Puberty when there had been no incidents before. (research is late 1960’s/70’s)  What does ‘Private’ really mean? How does it manifest?  Think about the future. Whilst it’s OK to have an open-door policy at home for health & safety reasons, how does this translate as the children get older?  Have an ‘resource bag’ of videos, books etc ready for ‘that moment’  Think about literal understanding (‘we put the condom on the banana like we’ve been taught, then had sex. Why did my girlfriend get pregnant?’)  The subtle rules of men’s public toilets…  What does it mean to be a ‘sex offender’?

“This was the most practical and helpful talk I've been to in years. Mark was superb and clearly hugely experienced - I'm really grateful.” Parent

Here are some related links: What's Happening to Tom? A book about puberty for boys and young men with autism and related conditions http://www.jkp.com/uk/series/sexuality-and-safety-with-tom-and-ellie.html A workbook about puberty for parents of children with learning disabilities. http://www.fpa.org.uk/product/talking-together-about-growing Life Support Productions - relationship and sex education DVD resources for children and young people. Including titles for special educational needs. http://www.lifesupportproductions.co.uk/ysdvd.php A comprehensive sex education guide for young people with learning disabilities / special educational needs, from Life Support Productions. http://www.fpa.org.uk/product/you-your-body-sex

Note from author: “I thought these articles were worth sharing and repeating. When your Special Needs Daughter Gets her Period [Source: Friendship Circle Blog]” https://parentingspecialneeds.org/article/tips-for-when-your-special-needs-daughter-getsher-period/

“New funding for School Improvement The government announces new funding to address underperformance and help ensure every child has a good school place.

New resources to ensure the number of good school places continues to rise were announced today (30 November 2016) by Education Secretary Justine Greening.

Less than a week after new figures showed the number of good or outstanding places had risen by 420,000 in the last year, the Education Secretary reiterated her determination to continue that upward trend by making new funds available to the school system.” https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-funding-for-school-improvement--2

IPSEA response to a previous government announcement On “Schools that work for everyone” IPSEA = Independent Parental Special Educational Advice “08/12/2016 07:44 Unfortunately, there is no mention of children with SEND in the Government’s proposals.

Recently, when asked what proportion of children with SEND were educated in grammar Schools, School’s Minister Nick Gibb stated: “Our vision for children with SEN and disabilities is the same as that for all children and young people – that they achieve well in their early years, at school and in college, that they find employment; lead happy and fulfilled lives; and experience choice and control. All schools must make admission decisions over those with Special Educational Needs and disabilities (SEND) fairly, and where a child with SEND meets the admission criteria of a selective school, this will allow them to access the benefits of education at that school” ”

Free Legal Advice IPSEA = Independent Parent Special Educational Advice Our website has free resources, which you can download, to help families get the right education for children and young people with all kinds of special educational needs and/or disability (SEND). You can access these resources via our home page, which include model letters, frequently asked questions and a jargon buster .

If you cannot find answers to your questions, or you need further information, then please consider using one of our free services:  The Information Services is for general legal enquiries and will signpost you to factsheets and resources on our website. Please complete our online information service form.  The Advice Line provides legally based information and next step advice on any educational issue that is the result of your child’s special educational needs or disability. This could include problems with schools, requesting statutory assessment, statements and Education, Health and Care Plans, annual reviews, disability discrimination and exclusion. Please book an appointment here. https://www.ipsea.org.uk/

MeToo&Co “Did you know that we have a free legal advice for education clinic?

If you are in need of free legal advice on SEN and educational matters, we can offer you our SEN Advocacy Clinic. Appointments with Fiona Slomovic of Advocacy and Mediation Consultants take place most Fridays from 9.30am to 2.30pm. Appointments booked via: “ T: 07702 189 889 E: helen@advocacyandmediation.co.uk or by calling.

W: http://www.metooandco.org.uk/activities/senadvice

SOS!SEN “We offer a free, friendly, independent and confidential telephone helpline for parents and others looking for information and advice on Special Educational Needs (SEN). To empower parents and carers we provide a free and friendly service including:  a telephone Helpline 5 days per week during term time  monthly drop in advice centres in some areas during term time  information sheets on many topics “ T: 020 8538 3731 E: admin@sossen.org.uk W: http://www.sossen.org.uk/index.php

What’s new on the Local Offer?

Remember, you can find information on events happening over the holidays, and in the lead to Christmas by searching #Christmas on the Local Offer.

The Local Offer is a community resource and needs to be kept up to date.

Parents – if you know of anything new for the Local Offer, or spot anything that is incorrect or out of date on the Local Offer then let us know using the contact form. https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/pages/home/find-out-more-about-the-local-offer/keepingthe-local-offer-up-to-date

Brand new page! A provision map (showing locations of settings suitable for SEND). Karen would like us to know that “I need to do continued improvements to the individual school pages so everything is more consistent - this is a big job and will take some time.” https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/pages/home/education/maps-showing-send-provision-inschools-in-kingston-and-richmond The Moor Lane Playground - closures in December and January https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/blog_articles/767-the-moor-lane-playground-closures-indecember-and-january Links that offer guidance about, or assistance with, certain health conditions or disabilities. https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/pages/home/health/useful-links-or-resources The Friends for Life programme is a school-based, positive mental health programme which is recommended as an approach for anxiety, and aims to promote emotional resilience. https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/blog_articles/766-friends-for-life-training-returns-to-kingstonin-february-2017 A reminder that the funding links in a previous ‘Dear All’ can now be found on the Local Offer. https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/pages/home/leisure-activities-and-short-breaks/otherfunding-and-grant-sources

New case studies for PDA “Pathalogical Demand Avoidance (PDA) is a relatively unusual form of autism and so professionals generally haven't seen very many cases. Parents also often don't meet very many others who have children with the same issues. This series of individual stories is intended to highlight a range of experiences and illustrate what has been particularly helpful or unhelpful for families.” http://www.pdasociety.org.uk/professionals/pda-stories-a-series-of-case-studies

Youth activities TAG Youth Club have a Friday evening Youth Club – open all year round from 7.30pm to 9.30pm (including 16th, 23rd and 30th December) https://www.afclocaloffer.org.uk/organisations/14471-tag-youth-club-for-disabled-youngpeople?term=TAG

Mencap Richmond Here you can find Richmond Mencap’s activities list for December and January – their activities cover a wide range of ages and include adults. http://richmondmencap.org.uk/events/

Mencap Kingston And a similar link for Kingston Mencap: http://www.kingstonmencap.co.uk/

Christmas coffees… #1 - morning – National Autistic Society Theme: We are delighted to welcome Sarah Ziegel, local author of 'A Parent's Guide to Coping with Autism' and parent of four boys with ASD. Friday 16th December – 10.30am to 12noon @ MeToo&Co, Twickenham Festive snacks will be provided, so if possible, please let us know if you'd like to attend as this will give us an idea of number of mince pies we'll need. We look forward to seeing you there.

Please e-mail: richmond@nas.org.uk http://www.richmondnas.org/activities-news-and-events.html

#2 - afternoon – Express CIC Theme: Come along for our Christmas Coffee get together and meet an Educational Psychologist. Tom Connor, Specialist Educational Psychologist will join us. He is keen to meet with, and talk, to parents. So please come along with your questions.

Friday 16th December – 12noon to 2pm @ Express CIC offices, Surbiton Spaces are very limited so please email info@expresscic.org.uk to book your space. https://www.facebook.com/events/1796712907234298/ As ever, if you have any queries at all, please ask and we'll always do our best to find an answer.

With best wishes, Caroline North (for Kingston) and Romany (for Richmond) Phone: 07469 746 145 www.sendfamilyvoices.org