Take here, a scenario whereby the court orders a report to be prepared on what level of contact the children (one of whom has a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder) should have with the parent with whom they do not live. However, in consequence of the author of the report having little understanding of Autism, they misconstrue comments made by the child who is Autistic during the course of their enquiries which leads the author to question whether the children should instead live with the non-resident parent, even though this was not the basis of the original application.

This outcome would be catastrophic for the family.

In this scenario, it is questionable whether the child with an Autism diagnosis should have spoken with the author of the report in the first instance. However, at the very least the author of the report should have been identified based upon their experience, knowledge and understanding of this unique condition.

During the course of a meeting a Legal Representative, one of whom does not have a comprehensive understating of Autism,  asks whether the child diagnosed with Autism has an Education, Health and Care plan [EHCP]. Let’s assume here, that the child has been granted an EHCP. The Legal Representative asks to see a copy. However, the legal representative places too much emphasis on the EHCP believing that this document holds the key to all information about the child and in consequence does not question the parent beyond what is in the EHCP.

Parents of children who have been granted an EHCP will know that whilst it can be a comprehensive document identifying the needs of their child it is by no means the only document which we have filed away and in fact the EHCP forms only one small piece of a much bigger jigsaw. It is therefore important that your legal representative has a full understanding of the nature of all of the various documents which relate to the child concerned and the importance of each document.

In consequence of this somewhat simplified approach vital evidence about the child’s diagnosis and crucially the child’s needs are missed, evidence which would have made a huge difference to the result in the case.

This may seem only a small point to some, but how often are meltdowns seen as nothing more than a temper tantrum?

Tasks which may be seen as simple and straightforward to most, such as getting out of bed in a morning or even getting dressed, sitting down at the table for a family meal or even taking a used plate into the kitchen can be filled with angst, upset and sensory processing overload otherwise described as a ‘meltdown’. 

For those of us who have experienced meltdowns, we know only too well that there is a big difference between a child who is having a temper tantrum and an Autistic child who is experiencing a meltdown or sensory processing overload.

A meltdown can last many hours. They often leave parents feeling emotionally drained, tired and sad by the sheer destruction which these meltdowns often leave behind and not to mention the deep routed sadness and pain we feel watching our precious children struggle whilst acknowledging that we are powerless to the way in which these sensory overloads can take over and leave our children feeling physically and emotionally drained.

The impact a meltdown has on the child concerned must never be underestimated. However, it is also important to understand the impact a meltdown has on the child’s sibling(s).

Meltdowns effect everyone differently and it is important that the legal representative in your case fully understands the child’s meltdown triggers, the nature of each meltdown, what happens to the child concerned both before, during and after a meltdown, what strategies must be followed to support the child both before, during and after a meltdown and what support should be given to any sibling throughout this difficult time. This list is by no means exhaustive as we know only too well the myriad of variables present during these difficult and challenging times.

However, legal representatives must know what questions to ask their client’s if they are to stand any chance of being able to properly advocate their client’s case. Failure to do so could have detrimental consequences for the family.