War declared on bus staff
It is with great regret that we have to announce that management's social skills are showing no signs of improvement.  We would have thought it was in everyone's best interests not to wind up these lovely sweet people who bus pupils to the school for a pitance. Most do it because they love children and they want to help. So what do these management bullies do?  They start getting funny with the bus staff and tell them that they are not even to park up on the property, where there are special bays marked out for them, but that they have to park in the road, from where the LSAs will get the pupils. This is utter madness, and presumably more dangerous for pupils.
We have to ask why?  But there isn't an obvious answer. However is it just another part of the paranoia that has everything locked up?  It makes no sense to upset these lovely bus people and this site supports the bus staff all the way.

Caretaker Leaves
The caretaker has apparently left as he had a disagreement with the Head Sue Davies,  so yet another failed social relationship!

Essex Can't Get Any Social Workers.
They are having to advertise in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa.
Social work in Essex has undergone a radical transformation. Social workers are self-directed which means god knows what, but they seem to have to control their individual budget.
Anyway it has resulted in the word getting around and no-one wants to be a social worker in Essex any more.

Statementing.
Essex are trying to minimise the number of statements they make, by issuing another plan which has no legal meaning at all. Just to recap, Part2 of the statement should identify the pupil's NEEDS educationally and otherwise, without holding back, using professional evidence, which the parents as well as the Education Authority can produce, and Part3 should state the PROVISION for all of those identified needs. The name of the school should be in Part 4. If any of this is not done you can challenge it, without expense, without legal representation (unless you want that) at a SENDIST Tribunal. This is not difficult and if you e-mail us we can help. Essex of course have to balance the books and it isn't a case of being fair, but sadly who shouts the loudest and causes the most disturbance. It is very sad that it has come to this.

New EBD unit will be in Harlow.
We think this will be separate to Harlow fields, because some EBDs don't have other special needs, and can benefit from a very specific regime. However there are EBDs wilh other special needs within HFS.