ASD

[halor]

Hi, my son is currently waiting to be assessed for ASD, as far as I understand the paediatrician believes he will be somewhere at the bottom of the spectrum. If he is diagnosed with ASD is it something I will have to inform ofsted about? He is 6 and at full time school

[Happy Bunny]

My son has ASD i never informed Ofsted. I just added it on to my SEF that I had personal experience of ASD due to my son being diagnosed
I was asked by the inspector how i coped when my son had a melt down, I explained the strategies that I had in place.
She was happy with this and didn't ask no more questions.

[halor]

Thanks happy bunny, we've been told it's about 18 months to wait for the assessment. I just wish we could have it sooner but hey ho, at least we're on the road there which is no mean feat as you probably know x

[sarah707]

We are hearing reports on the FB group of cms who have been pulled up by Ofsted for not informing them that their own children are being assessed or diagnosed with illnesses/ conditions etc.

It's considered by the inspector to be a 'significant' change to the provision.

Our advice is to ring them and ask their advice - ask 'do I need to inform you?' - and keep details of who you spoke to and when xx

[Happy Bunny]

I knew my son had issues when he was 2, this was before I started the registration process. Whilst I was registering I told the inspector that I had my suspicions that my son had ASD and I was going through the process of having him diagnosed.
I had thought long and hard about the implications of what I would do if he had a melt down whilst I was working and wrote a risk assessment of what I would do if this occurred.
I have a back up plan in place if he refuses to go to school, other people here to deal with him if he has a melt down whilst I am working.

I reassure parents now that at no time as he ever been harmful towards another child and if he get angry is asked to go to his room or is taken to a separate area to calm down.

As long as everything is documented and in place I cannot see Ofsted having an issue with this.
You would have to do all this if you were taking a child on who had special needs.

What I meant in my original post was that I didn't inform them when he was finally diagnosed

[Simona]

Hi, my son is currently waiting to be assessed for ASD, as far as I understand the paediatrician believes he will be somewhere at the bottom of the spectrum. If he is diagnosed with ASD is it something I will have to inform ofsted about? He is 6 and at full time school

I would wait until you have the full assessment from the professionals then think about what you need to do....I am sure you are an inclusive setting and that means your child will be included too.

You child counts in your ratio and he will receive care 'equally' to other children and of 'equal concern'...my view of course...should Ofsted know?
Not written anywhere either one way or the other

I also would like to add that 'autism' is not an illness ...what would we have to report to Ofsted?

If he is in the spectrum I see no reason he should be treated differently ...if you can care for him and other children too

What is said on FB cannot be taken seriously because we hear those are 'reports' about Ofsted...practice is different because inspectors are different and no one knows

I hope all goes well with you and please let us know what Ofsted say...I would certainly contact them but also seek advice elsewhere else
Good luck

[halor]

Thanks guys, we've got about an 18 month wait for the assessment and I know loads can happen in that time. Everything just feels very overwhelming at the moment and sometimes difficult. My son like, like happy bunny's, won't harm anyone but I do ask him to go for some calm down time in his room, I think sometimes he just needs his own space.
Personally I was suprised to hear that I may have to inform ofsted if he does get diagnosed. If I had a child come to me with ASD I wouldn't contact ofsted to tell them, I would just risk assess accordingly. The problem is , ofsted seem to be a law unto themselves with things like this and it feels like they're forever changing their minds.

Thank you, it's times like this when you need support of other hildminders xx