An AET autism guide for parents and carers
Working together with
your child’s school.
Supported by:
for parents & carers
genium
www.geniumcreative.com
How to use the guide:
This guide is to help parents and carers identify what is important
in the education of their child with autism or Asperger syndrome.
Parents and carers can use this guide to talk to staff in schools
about how best they can work together.
Your child
Adapting the learning
for your child
Working together with
the school
Supporting your child
at school
There are four main sections in the guide. Each section has a number of statements which you
can rate to identify what is most important for your child at school.
There is a 4 point rating scale
Essential
Important
Not very important
Not necessary
You may rate a number of the statements as essential or important for your child. We recommend that you choose
between 1-3 of these as priorities to work on with school staff. The next steps form at the end can be used to share
this information with staff to identify ways of working effectively together.
Many of the areas of practice listed in this guide are important to ALL children on the autism spectrum in schools
and some parents and carers in the consultation survey said they would put essential next to most of these.
However, as it is hard to work on several areas at once, it is useful to try to prioritise what is absolutely essential
for your child and to discuss how this might be acted upon with the staff. This does not mean that other areas need
to be left out with nothing being done.
Working together with your child’s school
for parents & carers
2
www.autismeducationtrust.org.uk
Resources
Resources and further reading for each statement can be found at the end of the guide. When you are online,
you can click on the link and the resource will open. These include published papers, photographs, accounts from
pupils and short video clips. The resources can be used by you and school staff to help meet the needs of your
child.
When to use the guide
You may want to use the guide to review priorities on an annual basis to review them more regularly to reflect the
changing needs of your child. The guide can be used to support your child at their current school or setting and
also to support transition to a new school.
Working with the school
The guide should enable you to work with school staff to identify and meet the needs of your child. We have
included three resources in the guide to support this process.
Information for schools – this has information about the guide and how schools can use this with parents and
carers. It can be given to key school staff e.g. Class Teacher, SENCO, or Head of Year
Top tips in working with the school – this has information for parents and carers about how to communicate
and work effectively with the school.
Children and Families Act (2014) - this has information about the new SEND Code of Practice for children
and young people with special needs and disabilities.
Working together with your child’s school
for parents & carers
3
Top tips
Identify the Key People in the school
Establish with the school which staff are the best people to contact if you have any information
or concerns to share. This may be the class teacher, the SENCo, support staff or the
Headteacher.
Make contact with staff early and
make it positive
Contact key people before your child starts school and meet them regularly, as and when
needed. Do not wait until your child has a problem. Parents who share relevant information
help school staff to prevent problems occurring. Try to stay positive and calm as discussions
are easier and more fruitful when staff and parents are in this state.
Use an agreed method to communicate
with staff
Agree with the staff the best method for contacting staff and for them to contact you. This
may be by email, by phone, by letter, by text or a combination of these. Before meetings it is
helpful to write down a list of things you would like to discuss.
Keep your messages short and focused
Keep your written comments, e-mails or voicemail messages short and state your main issue
clearly. Follow up with information about how and when staff can best reply to your message.
If you think a short message will not work, ask for a meeting with staff to discuss your
concerns in more detail.
Working together with your child’s school
in working with the school
1.
2.
3.
4.
4
Be clear about dates, actions and
responsibilities
Parent-staff discussions often result in an action plan. You need to clarify who (teacher, child,
parent, other professional) will do what (make an assessment, help develop friendships, check
the arrangements for the school trip) and when (every day, weekly, monthly). At the end of a
meeting or discussion, it is helpful to confirm the list of actions and the date of the next review.
Be patient, but be persistent
Most school staff will try to acknowledge contact from parents within 48 hours or sooner if
the issue is urgent. If you do not get a reply, send a brief follow-up e-mail or call the school
secretary to ask to have a message delivered to the staff member. If you feel there is a lack of
response from staff then you can discuss this with the head teacher or principal of the school.
Ask staff to explain the reasons behind their
actions and decisions
Allow staff the opportunity to explain the circumstances and reasons for their decisions about
your child. If necessary, take time to think over the explanation and your response. If the
explanation does not satisfy you, explain your reasons for this. Agree next steps for resolving
any issues with the school.
Ask a friend, relative or a professional
to attend meetings at the school
It is often useful to ask another person to come along to meetings at the school as it can be
difficult to listen to what is being said as well as to think of the questions you might want to
ask. Another person can remind you of what you wanted to get from the meeting.
Top tips
Working together with your child’s school
in working with your school
5.
6.
7.
8.
5
1. Staff find out from your child on a regular basis,
which aspects of school s/he enjoys and finds
challenging.
4. Staff assess your child’s ability to engage socially
with other children and how s/he feels about work
and play with other children.
3. Your child is motivated to engage in activities by
the use of their strengths, special interests and
favourite activities.
2. Information about your child’s strengths, interests,
needs, emotional well-being and learning is
obtained from your child, from yourselves and
others involved with your child.
5. Staff assess your child’s sensory needs and how
these might be addressed.
6. Staff assess your child’s ability to communicate
effectively and how these skills might be enhanced.
Additional notes: Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Please rate the following statements:
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Your child
Working together with your child’s school
6
7. The staff take steps to safeguard your child from
teasing and bullying.
10. Staff know how your child feels about being
touched (eg physically prompted) or others
getting too close and respect this.
8. Staff understand and take account of your child’s
issues with eating, drinking and toileting.
11. Staff teach your child a communication system
and this is shared with you.
12. Your child is carefully prepared for all transitions
from one activity to another and when moving
classes or schools.
9. Your child’s actions and behaviour are understood
and managed from their perspective, as a child
with autism.
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Your child
Working together with your child’s school
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
7
13. Staff understand that your child is often highly
stressed or anxious and have some strategies to
reduce this.
Additional notes:
Essential
Not very important
Important
Not necessary
Your child
Working together with your child’s school
Resources
8
14. The school allocates a named professional to work with
you on shared goals and priorities for your child.
17. There is good and open communication between all
the staff that work with your child and with yourselves,
as parents
16.
The school provides training on autism for all staff,
including support staff and non-contact staff.
19. Your child is given opportunities and support to
develop relationships with other children in a way that
suits them
15. The school has a named person (autism lead or
specialist) with general information on autism and
specific information about your child.
18. The school has a number of ways of informing you
about your child (eg reports, training, email, DVD,
photos)
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Please rate the following statements:
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Working together with the school
Working together with your child’s school
9
20. Supply staff and new staff are informed about the
needs of your child.
Additional notes:
Essential
Not very important
Important
Not necessary
Working together with the school
Working together with your child’s school
Resources Resources
21. Parents/carers have a dedicated time and space to
meet as a group.
Additional notes:
Essential
Not very important
Important
Not necessary
10
22. Your child has a safe and quiet place to go to within
the classroom or school when needed.
24. The school has clearly defined and safe spaces/areas
for your child’s personal possessions.
23. Objects, pictures, photos, symbols, written lists are
used with your child to ensure that the sequence of
activities during the day is predictable.
26. Staff give your child time to process and respond to
instructions.
25. Staff have a calm, quiet, empathic and consistent
manner with your child.
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Please rate the following statements:
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Adapting the learning for your child
Working together with your child’s school
11
28. Your child’s engagement and enjoyment of activities
and lessons is observed and action taken, where
needed.
27. Your child is given advanced warning of any changes
to staffing, the timetable or familiar routines.
30. Your child is supported to know what to do in free time
such as break and lunch times both within the building
and outdoors.
29. Staff are flexible and will make adjustments to
activities, lessons and homework, as necessary, for
your child.
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Please rate the following statements:
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
Supporting your child at school
31. Your child is taught strategies to reduce stress and
anxiety (eg to go to a quiet area; to do a self-calming
activity)
Additional notes:
Essential
Not very important
Important
Not necessary
Working together with your child’s school
32. Staff work to include your child in all activities offered
to other children, within and after school, which your
child would like to join
Additional notes:
Essential
Not very important
Important
Not necessary
Resources
12
34. Your child is taught daily living skills to promote
independence (eg cooking; shopping; clothes washing;
use of public transport).
33. Staff work on helping your child to understand and
manage his/her emotions
36. Your child is helped to understand what s/he reads
and concessions for tests and exams are given or
applied for, where necessary
35. Your child is helped to understand autism and how this
affects them and to have a positive view of autism and
themselves.
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Additional notes:
Essential
Essential
Essential
Essential
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Not very important
Important
Important
Important
Important
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Not necessary
Please rate the following statements:
Supporting your child at school
Working together with your child’s school
Resources
Resources
Resources
Resources
13
Next steps
Top 3 essential standards
Name: Date:
Actions to be taken together
with the school.
Actions to be taken together
with the school.
Actions to be taken together
with the school.
Statement number
Statement number
Statement number
3.
2.
1.
Working together with your child’s school
14
Ideal school
Ideal self
Pupils views on school
Christie paper
John Simpson clip
Passport Joe
Passport Matthew
AET person centred planning
John Simpson audio transcript
Temple Grandin Youtube clip
Badge system
Sensory checklist
John Simpson clip on sensory issues
Adding meaning to communication
Bullying and teasing
B is for bullied
ERIC for parents on toileting
Gillian Harris - selective eating
www.attentionautism.com
Autistic lens
Autistic view resource bank
Dean Beadle video
Ros Blackburn - Within and without autism
Low arousal
AET transition toolkit
Moving class
Effects of change
Additional resources and further reading
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
12
Your child
Working together with your child’s school
15
Working together with the school
How helping works
Home-school doc
Parents views on what makes a good school
Parent survey summary
Lead practitioner
Mainstream autism: making it work
www.aet-idp.org.uk
Awesomes
Circle of friends
Friendship Programme for Secondary schools
Group working Miranda Lego paper
www.aet-idp.org.uk
Additional resources and further reading
14
15
16
19
20
Working together with your child’s school
16
Sensory checklist for school environment
Sensory checklist for pupils
Designing learning spaces for children
on the autism spectrum
Adult style
Practitioner views
Understanding the actions of other puils and
staff not on the autism spectrum towards
someone who is
Professional views on staff qualities
What makes a ‘good’ practitioner in the field
of autism?
Additional resources and further reading
22
24
25
Adapting the learning for your child
Working together with your child’s school
17
Outcomes report
Puberty and sexual health
Objects of reference list
Washing hands schedule
www.do2learn.com
Swimming toolkit
A Guide to Primary Differentiation
A Guide to Secondary Differentiation
Pupils views on breaktimes
Emotions keyring
The use of cognitive behavioural
strategies in the management of anger in
a child with an autistic spectrum disorder
Emotional well being booklet
Personal statements to aid transition
to further and higher education and
employment
Jonathan Diagnostic DVD
Helen from Diagnostic DVD
QCA exam concessions
Additional resources and further reading
27
29
31
32
33
35
36
Supporting your child at school
Working together with your child’s school
18
Austism Education Trust
393 City Road, London
EC1VNG, UK
E / info@autismeducationtrust.org.uk
T / 020 7903 3650
www.autismeducationtrust.org.uk
Supported by:
Developed by Genium for the AET in consultation
with children and young people with autism, parents,
carers and practitioners: Project Manager - Martin
Kerem, Authors - Dr Glenys Jones, Damian Milton,
Ryan Bradley.
Bradley, R., Jones, G., Milton, D. and Kerem, M.
(2014) Working together with your child’s school:
An AET autism guide for parents and carers: London:
Autism Education Trust.
An AET autism guide for parents and carers
Working together with
your child’s school.
for parents & carers
genium
www.geniumcreative.com