School giving me no notice

alexandrajj

My DS has certain allergies and has to be careful about what he eats. His primary school is aware of this and they make sure that he doesn't try foods or eat other children's foods. He takes a packed lunch to school each day and they make sure he only eats his food.

His teacher this year has a real thing about baking. They are ALWAYS baking (every other week or whenever she can use it in the curricculum). Because of DS's allergies, she started at the beginning of the year by telling me what they are making, what ingrediants she is planning on using and if there are any that DS cannot use/eat then I bring some of the ingredient in for DS to use. This is all fine an reasonable. However I am finding that i am getting absolute minimal notice about what ingrediants are needed. Half the time she doesn't actually speak to me- she just sends a message home with DS (can you rely on a KS1 child to get the message always accurate?). Usually i get "told" what is required the night before, expecting the ingredients to be brought to school the following morning (i have checked when DS got told to see if he was leaving it a few days before telling me-he isn't). I have no opportunity to double check what DS is saying nor clarify anything with her. What has taken the biscuit is when she approached me in the playground one morning and asked for x, y and z saying that they would be baking "possibly later this morning or if not straight after lunch". This amount of notice is ridiculous.

I have been very polite but firm to her and pointed out that i need more notice and that it would be better if she spoke to me/rang me or sent a clear note home with DS. I have said that I do not keep many of the ingredients at home, I do not drive and so cannot rush out to the 24 hour Tesco and infact the Tesco doesn't stock most of the specialist ingredients anyway. I am still getting minimal notice and I am seriously ticked off by it. I have bit my tongue as it is now nearing the end of the school year but I have now found out that DS is having the same teacher next year. I am not happy for this situation to continue for another 12 months.

I am happy to provide the ingredients (as long as I am given suitable notice to get them) but I wonder if i am actually OBLIGED to provide them. DS's problems are properly documented and proper medical problems (not a preference or dislike). Due to "inclusiveness" and so as not to discriminate on the grounds of health or disability shouldn't the school provide them? After all, there are 2 physically disabled kids in the class and the school don't go asking their parents to provide specialist "items" because of their "needs" so that they can take part in school activities - the school just provides them. So what is different in DS's case?

I am not wanting to sound tight or mean but I am on means-tested beenfits and these budgetry constraints, coupled with the minimal notice I am getting, are seriously peeing me off. Before I go throwing my dummy out of the pram, I wanted to be sure of my position and find out whether I am obliged to provide these items. I don't want DS to miss out on activities/food tasting just because mummy gets stroppy at the teacher, but since polite & firm conversations seem to have no effect on resolving the "notice" situation. I'm wondering if maybe the school (i.e. the teacher concerned) had to get the specialist ingrediants, then maybe she'd realise the notice that is needed. I don't want to be stroppy but if she was put in the position of having to sort out the ingrediants then she'd know notice is needed and I can't see how she/the school could refuse because if they don't they are excluding my DS because of his disability (they manage to make sure the 2 physically disabled kids have suitable "items").

Does anyone know whether the school is technically responsible for providing suitable ingrediants?

thanks in advance

Nicki

Have you spoken to the school's SENCO? What do they say about this? If no joy, speak to the head, and then to the governor with responsibility for special educational needs.

You are right that you should not be expected to provide materials for a documented medical condition. I suspect perhaps you offered, or they thought you offered, to do this at the outset, then things got out of hand and they haven't realised what a burden this has become.

PS - this only applies for medical needs and not for those who choose to have vegan or veggie kids AFAIK!

Pssst

Whats a KS1 and whats a SENCO?

Nicki

Pssst wrote: »

Whats a KS1 and whats a SENCO?

KS1 is Key Stage 1 (ie under 7) and a SENCO is the special educational needs coordinator, which all schools have to have.

alexandrajj

Nicki wrote: »

Have you spoken to the school's SENCO?

she is the school SENCO! :rotfl:I have made it clear to her in conversations i have had that DS's dietry requirements are NOT a fad or a preference but a genuine medical necessity and repeated to her the symptoms if he eats the ingrediants. I did this because i did previously wonder if she had misunderstood DS's needs because he is also vegetarian. I wanted to make it clear to her that i appreciate that vegetarianism is a choice to avoid meat, allergies are medical needs to avoid certain foods.

Nicki wrote: »

You are right that you should not be expected to provide materials for a documented medical condition. I suspect perhaps you offered, or they thought you offered, to do this at the outset, then things got out of hand and they haven't realised what a burden this has become.

Yes I think this has happened:o I want to be supportive and helpful and I am keen to not put the school out unnecessarily. Teachers have a million and one things to do and that's before they start thinking about the special needs of particular kids in the class. In Nursery and Reception baking was only occasionally and I was usually told half a term in advance what was going to happen, then reminded about a week before, then the day before the teacher/nursery nurse reminded me again.

Now in Year 1 it has become a problem. I am on benefits now & the teacher does not seem to think parents need any notice. I fear I am going to have to upset her by putting my foot down. Maybe I could use the "i can't afford it now, I'm on benefits" arguement and also ask her if she needs to have photocopies (again) of DS's allergies in order to
"draw up a special needs plan so that the school can make sure they have suitable ingrediants so they can ensure DS's needs are met when they do baking in future".

I feel bad but what can you do when you get asked at 8.55am to bring into school ingrediants before 10.30am but the shop to buy them from is about 30 mins away by bus. That's before I check my purse to see if I have enough money to pay for them and the bus fare. Maybe my response should be " Sorry but no I can't, maybe you can "pop" and get them before 10.30am today". The trouble is, my DS would be the one who would miss out.

kjmtidea

I think that is a ridiculous situation to put you in and very cheeky of the teacher to suggest it! I would be annoyed enough at 1 days notice, let alone a couple of hours.

I would just explain to her that you need at least 2 days notice, you don't drive and you can't pick these ingredients up at any old corner shop. I would also speak to the head and let them know and then hopefully it might sink in that you are a Mum, not superwoman!

Curlywurli

As a teacher myself, I find it very surprising that a teacher would be able to suddenly decide to do a cookery lesson! Apart from the time involved and need to follow the curriculum etc, surely she can't just pop out and buy ingredients. If I was planning to do cookery I would know at least a week in advance and would have to go out and buy the ingredients needed for the class.
She must be able to give you more notice than she is at the moment. As your child is in her class (I presume she's getting the ingredients for the class) she should also be buying what is needed for your child. We have children with allergies and they are catered for, if a treat is given out, e.g. a sweet, a teacher would ensure that they have an alternative.

alexandrajj

Curlywurli wrote: »

As a teacher myself, I find it very surprising that a teacher would be able to suddenly decide to do a cookery lesson! Apart from the time involved and need to follow the curriculum etc, surely she can't just pop out and buy ingredients. If I was planning to do cookery I would know at least a week in advance and would have to go out and buy the ingredients needed for the class.
She must be able to give you more notice than she is at the moment. As your child is in her class (I presume she's getting the ingredients for the class) she should also be buying what is needed for your child. We have children with allergies and they are catered for, if a treat is given out, e.g. a sweet, a teacher would ensure that they have an alternative.

The baking will have been planned, communal school equipment assembled, get equipment for SEN kids, ingrediants bought - then as an afterthought, oh yes, got to sort out Benjamin -tell him to tell his mum tonight to bring stuff in in the morning :rolleyes:

Personally I think she is incredibly disorganized (how would a teacher get away with this?) or, my paranoid self thinks she feel that his allergies aren't real so makes life a bit difficult for me or she thinks because I don't work, I can just do things with no notice. I think if I don't bring ingrediants in anymore, then baking activities would become more difficult for her.

Just trying to get it through to her is impossible!! (Having said all this, she's a lovely teacher, really good, enthusiastic, gets the best out of the kids - just seems to think I should fit round her).

grannynise

Go to see the headteacher. He/she probably doesn't know that this is happening but will easily be able to sort it out if you kindly inform him/her. Then you don't have to speak to the teacher about it again.

mrcow

I think my son's class have cooked something once this year.


How much cooking can one teacher do? Seriously?

alexandrajj

mrcow wrote: »

I think my son's class have cooked something once this year.


How much cooking can one teacher do? Seriously?

I know!!!!

She fits it in to all sorts of aspects of the curricculum. It's her "thing". Got to the stage where the children ask to do it in their "extra time" (not sure what it is, in the time they get on a friday if they've all been good).

Thing is, you can't fault her on so many aspects of her teaching. She gets the kids to behave, listen, take notice, she motivates them this is why i feel so bad for feeling peeved at her lack of notice.