Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

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nicemum
Posts: 94
Joined: Tue Apr 08, 2008 3:16 pm

Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by nicemum »

Anyone with any experiences of independent Ed Psych please.
We want our DC assessed for academics, and DX with sch issues - to get a report that will enable us place our DC in the school that will cater for all educational needs etc.

Are independent Ed Psych actually independent of the LEA - recent experience of a friend of mine - independent ed psych suggesting sch that the parents do not want that LEA is chosen as the nearest sch. What is baffling is that the ed psych has not carried out any assessment yet on this young girl - just a home visit - is that enough to say - what the DX will be.
Ed psych suggesting assessing for dyslexic - which concidentally is the specialism of the nearest school. :shock: however the child is not dyslexic. One wonders if the ed psych will be producing a report to tailor the LEA needs rather than the child.

Is there something going on in these boroughs - do we get a true reflection in the reports of our child when we use an ed psych who works for the same LEA - a possibility if tribunals - might have implication for the ed psych. afterall, the services cost over £350. :roll:

Will it be better to get a Ed psych from a different borough to carry out the assessment instead as the current one works in the borough - clinical not educational dept.
ian35mm
Posts: 224
Joined: Sat Nov 29, 2008 8:04 pm

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by ian35mm »

It's been a long day, and it might be me, but this is totally baffling!
marigold
Posts: 656
Joined: Tue Sep 22, 2009 3:14 pm
Location: essex

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by marigold »

I seem to remember from nursing training that DX is used as shorthand for diagnosis...this may help with understanding the question.
Greta2
Posts: 180
Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2008 2:21 am

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by Greta2 »

The report from any Ed psych, whether employed by the LEA or privately, should reflect their independent, professional view. As with any professional report, they could be challenged on their findings and should make it clear how they have come to their conclusion and recommendations.

At the same time I would be concerned about any professional who accepted work on a private basis for someone who is, or could be, referred to them as part of their statutory role. This would usually be frowned upon and generally most statutory employers have a clause in contracts to this effect. If you work for a statutory body (e.g. LEA or NHS) and then want to do private work you have to formally inform your employer. They will usually reply saying – that’s fine so long as it doesn’t affect your main job and you don’t accept work from people who see or who might be referred to you in your day job. So my first thought is that I would query someone working for the LEA or NHS who also sees people privately in the same LEA / PCT. (None of the clincial psychologists I know accept private referrals from anyone living in their PCT area).

When we decided to go along the private Ed Psych route I deliberately went to someone who does no LEA work now. The downside of course is that then they are not familiar with the local area, resources and schools. However I just wanted a thorough baseline assessment.

In the end we got what we wanted; (that doesn’t mean that we got the results we wanted –as they were something of a shock) – however we did get a detailed but very readable report, with all of the test data including raw scores, centiles and a through summary of the Ed Psych’s view.

That is not to say that this shouldn’t be available from the LEA Ed Psych –we also received an excellent report when DS was finally assessed by the LEA Ed Psych and she was very happy to accept and review the previous test scores undertaken by the private Ed Psych.

However if you have lost faith – or even if you are questioning things – it may well be worth seeking another view.
nicemum
Posts: 94
Joined: Tue Apr 08, 2008 3:16 pm

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by nicemum »

i guess you have to go with gut feeling - now contacted another - hopefully we get all report before we received the lea final statement. thanks all for listening
Morning Glory
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Joined: Fri Jul 31, 2009 8:46 pm
Location: Bucks

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by Morning Glory »

My understanding is the same a Greta's. When we had our DS assessed the EP worked for a London Borough and said he would not have seen us if we had come under the same LEA as it would be a conflict of interest.

EPs should work within the British Psychological Society (BPS) Code of Conduct, Ethical Principles and Guidelines’ and be members of the Healthcare Profession Council. In theory this means EP's should always act in the child's best interests.

Private EP assessments are expensive but they can be worth every penny as in our case.
lashingsofgingerbeer
Posts: 29
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 11:43 am
Location: Bromley

Re: Any experiences of Independent Education Psych please

Post by lashingsofgingerbeer »

Totally agree with morning glory on this one. If you can afford a private, unbiased Ed Psych. report it is worth every penny in my opinion and better done sooner rather than later. As morning glory says, make sure they are BPS/HPC/etc., checked and then research their credentials as well as research the issues that concern you too.

A full report shows you your DCs raw scores, centile scores & IQ score & then pinpoints the areas of weakness & strength. It is worth its weight in gold as my DD grapples with all the exam techniques and homework that comes with GCSEs. We have had a good few years background of how to help her & support her way of learning, which is totally different from ours, and it has given us time to investigate the things that will best suit her, rather than wasting money on methods that wont. Our borough said she didn't have a problem at all from the tests they carried out. We knew our DD best & went down the private route. She is dyslexic but achieving very well because we knew her best and she now has extra time for all her GCSEs, something our local council would never offer because their hands are tied by the government when it comes to dishing out statements and that is the sad fact for all those parents out there who really care about their DC education.

A SENCO issue makes it ten times harder for the DC to achieve but it certainly doesn't mean that DC cannot achieve, you just have to know how to unlock the potential inside :D
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