school shoes

[gps2714]

my son has severe autism and ADHD so when we went to clarks shoe shopping together he only wanted a pair of girls shoes for school and he got the clarks tizz folly bl flats and they are awful they fall of his feet when he wears them and they are not water proof very disappointed in clarks what should I do as I can't afford new shoes?

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear gps2714,


Welcome to the Parent’s Forum and thank you for posting.
I apologise for the delay in responding to your post. The Parents Forum has been very busy recently.

I can see that you are struggling to buy new school shoes, your son having chosen shoes that do not fit.

You might be able to get help from the following places:

• Some schools have funds to help parents with school uniform. You could ask the school whether they have any support to help you get new shoes for him.
• Family Action give out money or grants to help parents in severe financial difficulties.
• There is the Family Fund -who offer money and support for children with disabilities.
• Contact -the organisation that supports children with disabilities have a telephone advice line and you can contact them by email as well. They also have a lot of information about how to get support from children services and via the benefits system-so that you can be sure that you are getting all the benefits you need.
The National Autistic Society have a helpline and you can email them about your situation.

What about children services?

Is your son under the children services disability team? If so, speak to the social worker about what has happened-can they provide money towards new shoes?
If he is not under a social worker, you could contact children services and ask for an assessment for support. Here is our advice sheet 4 –Family Support about asking for an assessment and what support may be available. As you can see, these assessments can be very in-depth and some people will understandably find them intrusive as well.

Here are FAQ’s about asking for family support from children services. These question and answers are very useful as often it can be difficult to get support form children services.

I hope this advice helps but if you have any questions, please post again or call our advice line on 0808 801 0366.

Best wishes,
Suzie