This questionnaire has been designed for parents of children with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder currently resident within the UK. Autism and Asperger's Syndrome are classified as Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). It is designed to evaluate their experiences of the school system, and to gauge the opinion of these parents to inform our campaign. The questionnaire is designed to supply us with usable information whilst guaranteeing your anonymity to outside bodies. Thank you in advance for taking the time and trouble to complete this questionnaire. We hope it will generate a large amount of interest in the campaign. We would greatly appreciate any additional comments you would like to make. These can be inserted into the box marked 'Further Information' at the end of the questionnaire, or emailed separately to:- questionnaires@autismrights.org.uk. If you want to return to the opening page, click here. If you have more than one child with an ASD, please could you fill in separate questionnaires for each child. We regret it is simply not possible to collate responses any other way.
1) Does your child have a formal diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Autism, or Asperger's Syndrome?
2) What is the age of your child with an ASD?
3) Child's gender
4) Your Marital Status
5) Current Educational Provision for your child
Co-ordinated Support Plans (CSPs) will replace Record of Needs on 14th November 2005, under the new Addional Support for Learning (ASL) Act. There is a transition period to allow for the requisite changes to take place, but the Scottish Executive has made it very clear that not all children with a Record of Needs will get a CSP.
6) Does your child have a Record of Needs (Scotland) or a Statement of Needs (England, Wales and Northern Ireland)?
7) Does your child have a CSP?
8) How long did this take to put together from start to finish?
9) How long did it take to get agreement from your local authority to start this process?
10) Did the local authority follow the content of your child's Statement / Record of Needs?
11) Was any of the information which you supplied of your child's needs or abilities inserted into the Record of Needs / CSP / Statement?
12) If so, which sections did these go into (please tick all that apply)?
13) Did the local authority assess your child for the Statement / Record of Needs:-
14) What was wrong with the assessments (please tick all that apply)?
15) Does your child have an IEP?
16) Do you have a copy of your child's IEP?
17) Did the school involve you in its construction?
18) Do you feel that your input was valued?
19) Did the school use the information you supplied in a way that was constructive for your child?
20) Have you ever made an appeal: (check all of the boxes which are relevant)
21) Have you ever withdrawn your child from their placement?
22) If 'Yes', was this your child's current or a former placement?
23) Do you want to withdraw your child from their placement?
24) Your reasons for this (tick all that apply):-
25) Has your child ever been excluded from school?
26) If `Yes`, was this a frequent occurrence?
27) Has your child ever been referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services?
28) If 'Yes', do you believe that your child's school experiences were a direct contributor to this?
29) If you have withdrawn your child from school, what improvements have you noted in their behaviour (please tick all that apply)?
30) When dealing with your local authority and school, have you noted any of these features in their communication with you (please tick all that apply)?
31) Do you receive minutes for all of the meetings concerned with the following (please tick all that apply)?
32) Overall, how accurate would you say these minutes are?
33) In the way they question you, have you ever felt that the professionals dealing with your child are seeking to label you with Munchausen's Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP)?
34) If `Yes`, do you think this may be to avoid (please tick all that apply)?
35)To your knowledge, have you ever been investigated by any professional for MSBP?
MSBP was 'discovered' by Professor Roy Meadows, who has since been barred by the General Medical Council. He claimed that some mothers want to harm their children in order to gain attention for themselves. The clinical guidelines subsequently issued by the government to define MSBP overlapped in several of their criteria with the international clinical criteria for ASD. An unknown number of mothers of autistic children have been labelled with MSBP, and some have had their children taken into care.
36) Do those health professionals involved with your child provide:-
37) Does your child have a Social Worker?
38) If 'Yes', in its effects, has this been:-
39) Do you know what ASD training has been given to your child's teachers?
40) If you do, what level is this training at?
41) Please tick those of the following aspects of ASD and ASD specific education that you know your child's teachers are familiar with:-
42) How often are you permitted to contact your child's teachers?
43) Is there any provision of ASD specific playschemes in your area?
44) What kind of information would you like to have better access to (tick all that apply)?
Email address
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Copyright © Fiona Sinclair November 2005 (original version copyright © Fiona Sinclair September 2004).
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