Unlikely BBC will ever prevent the iplayer from being free. It lost the new generation long ago. I'm not young but even I use youtube for most of my 'TV'. Most BBC stuff is recycled rubbish that wasn't ever any good. You can bet somewhere on youtube you can find a lot of decent stuff. A lot of stuff gets taken down due to copyright, but it's often put back up again under disguised names. BBC knows it's basically reliant on Brits charity to pay the fee out of tradition & in many cases young peoples ignorance. Put any more pressure on the already tightly squeezed & BBC know its days will be numbered all the sooner.

Thanks for the replies. I emailed council & surprisingly got a super quick reply. They said I need to get a letter from a professional such as a GP or social worker, stating need & also need for companion. I currently never see my GP, as I never go out. So this may never materialize, even if I make many attempts. I reported my blackouts to previous GP when they started to happen with no warning in adulthood- but without going for scan GPs seemed set on assuming it's down to depression or maybe not even real. I live alone apart from my child & have no witnesses. I also never carried ID when it occurred in past while out, I was too confused to even know my name & fled in embarrassment- so have no proof there either. Sensory overload makes it impossible for me to go anywhere when I know I'll be required to communicate or be overloaded with light/sound/smell etc. So in past I couldn't go to hospital for recommended brain scan- which is apparently the only way to prove they're real. If further proof is required I'd probably just not bother with this, I can live without bus pass. I'm really not that keen on going out anyway & if anything this just gives me the excuse I will desperately search for not to bother.

Thank you for clarifying what you meant. When someone just puts a past thread I did & quotes it with "???" I really have no idea what they are saying. Sorry, I have a big enough job just trying to understand what people mean when they actually say what they mean. That past thread isn't even relevant either as the DLA award was wrongly dated up to 2013 & apparently should have been 2014. But I don't know how to close threads?

Thanks for this. Not sure if it's considered a learning disability though. Although I can't learn anything new & wouldn't even be able to pass a theory test, due to poor memory etc- that doesn't seem to count apparently. As my diagnosis was given including some drivel about having above average IQ, simply from the assessor showing me flash cards of a few 'big words' & apparently I pronounced them correctly! My GP doesn't seem to acknowledge aspergers exists, he hasn't included it in my medical history or spoke of it at all after I was given diagnosis. Diagnosis letter just came back- you have apsergers syndrome, others feel it's a relief to know this is why they've always felt different. We know you didn't feel relieved- but tough. Do the same as them, just read aspergirls this will help you & now you can get on with your life. It took ages to get my GP to even do a letter to ATOS regarding home assessment. Even though by the time he did I was in severe panic mode, so bad he diagnosed me with agoraphobia. I refused to communicate with ATOS & never have done. I never see my GP the last time I saw him was in January? I only communicate by letter & it's very hard to get any reply from him. I used to have to in order to get fitness for work notes- but no longer need these. So I was not going to communicate with him again unless DWP harassed me again & decided to put me on trial again just for being disabled. GP has always ignored when I report about my blackouts & absences- he just refers me to talking therapy. As if he thinks they are just caused by depression & may go! Proving he doesn't bother reading anything I send him. I don't think I can change GP as they'd probably insist on seeing me too- or do nothing also. GP refused to visit me & I can't make him. Although my problems cause severe pain/discomfort etc he knows they aren't going to kill me- so he can't be prosecuted for neglect. Even if I killed myself due to the pain & left a note stating I killed myself due to GP refusing to visit/prescribe meds. It would be me who would be blamed & stated that I was severely depressed- refused to phone talking therapies! To cover himself he can easily use old main diagnosis of depression, as stated on fit note & in my notes!

Hello, I have never driven or even tried to. I get blackouts & absences- though have no formal diagnosis for this. I've always known even attempting to drive would put myself & others at risk + makes me feel overloaded. I was diagnosed with aspergers syndrome last year. I get middle rate DLA care & only low rate mobility (had to appeal to get this). I tried for high rate mobility due to the severity of my problems, but with lack of proof to back it up & looking relatively 'normal' didn't help. I have just received a letter putting me in 'support group' for ESA despite failing to attend 2 scheduled ATOS assessments. I've been awarded £181.15 week. I don't know what this means. I don't go out usually & haven't been out since February. I get sensory overload from even the most minor things (causing absences/migraines etc), despite wearing motorbike glasses & earplugs. I was thinking that I might try to go out if I could get a bus pass- as otherwise it ends up costing a lot. I often get absences continually & would usually miss my stop, thereby having to pay lots of money & causing extreme stress- which aggravates other problems. I still can't afford anyone to go with me, nor would I accept anyone. And Buses are also very expensive where I live. I have tried to find out local council policy but it is very confusing & quotes entitlement in relation to universal credit- which I don't understand. It also seems to imply that a person must have a severe visible disability, such as a permanent loss of sight etc. Or be receiving DLA mobility at highest rate?

I wouldn't believe everything you read, most of it is propaganda to get public on side with government agenda eg making out there's billions lost in disabled fraud, allowed them to employ ATOS & find even severely disabled or dying people fit to work. Have you even been to citizens advice Bureau? The problem is that social workers who deal with children are there for the child & not you. They will be looking to criticize you & show how if you'd been left to cope- you wouldn't. Even admitting you need help- is sadly twisted by them. They love to make people look inadequate & in need of their help. If they just give you the advice it deprives them of dragging your case out. Instead they love having formal drawn out meetings/plans. Then having all actions & needs formally acknowledged. Sometimes you also have to be referred to a service by a professional, who will only do so if ordered to at such meetings. This makes my blood boil.

It's hard to make anything stick to social services. I don't think greensaab should pay for a solicitor them self either (not worth expense) & unless kids are at risk of being taken away- there's no prospect of free legal aid, even if was on benefits. Unfortunately social workers dealing with children are given the power of god. This is why most of them have their heads so firmly jammed up their jaxi & make such stupid remarks! They know there's virtually nothing you can do or will happen as a consequence- they get away with much worse. In my case the whole of my child's social care file/health notes was compiled in secret & filled with nothing factual whatsoever- it was all 'libelous'. There was blatant proof of tampering with records etc. The department had even been found 'unfit for purpose' by official assessor at this time & were aware of this- but still they carried on. The point is there's no other option- they can't be shut down. In my case I was even told that my complaints didn't even meet the threshold to be considered as a complaint. This is because the first step is to complain to the conference chair- who is obviously never going to admit they got it very wrong or put colleagues in it. It then takes ages to continue, most people are put off. I don't mean to sound trivial but to say that you showed no remorse, is actually a very minor comment- believe me they could say much worse & have nothing happen. This probably really wouldn't meet social services internal complaints process threshold- I doubt you'd even be offered an apology. It was clear from my file that I'd been severely harassed by social services even before my child was born, up until she was almost 2- when this was proved all they thought I was entitled to was an apology & letter stating my child had never been at risk. It took 5 years to be able to complete councils own complaints process & be entitled to go to local government ombudsman to get them to force action. No solicitor would help me as I couldn't pay. If I'd been able to pay, it would probably have cost me a fortune & more than I ended up with- which was only paid due to the time it had taken to deal with my complaint.

It's good that you have this. The fact they have put you have shown no remorse will make no difference. They were claiming you physically harmed him & didn't care. If you prove you didn't- the fact they claim you showed no remorse is actually a good thing. It tallies with the fact you caused no physical harm. If you decided to try to get your child to do something beneficial to them, by pulling them to a car etc- this doesn't equal mental harm either. Provided the thing was in the best interest of the child, which it sounds like it was considered to be. Some social workers have them self got away with physically dragging kids to health assessments or 'special schools' etc kicking & screaming, as it can be proven it was done in the best interest of the child.

Sorry to write so much. it's just I get so angry when vulnerable parents are harassed & abused- which is done so easily these days. There were no witness statements with me either. In my case I had been fitted up by the health visitor who told me to do 'timed crying' to get baby to sleep. I told her I refuse to do it as poor sleep was due to baby teething- but HV said she'd 'get others involved' if I refused to comply. When I did comply with what she said, she said I'd only tried a halfhearted attempt & said I must do it properly. I did the next day & it obviously caused crying- a neighbor reported this. 2 social workers came round the next day & investigated- I told them it was health visitors advice- they checked & confirmed this. But at the conference my health visitor who made me do it, refused to accept it was her fault & never admitted she was the cause (only reported the result 'crying')! She had gossiped with all agencies to get them to record the report of loud crying & stated she witnessed my child was unhappy! Records later showed that HV had added negative comments to records weeks after the original record of her visit- just to fabricate evidence. It was only long after conference I was able to obtain records to have any chance of fighting it, by then it was too late as all professionals had recorded in their agencies records that my child is 'at risk'. There was also no sources of where allegations of crying had come from- but it was obviously neighbor. I got access to children's social care records that later confirm an anonymous call was received from a 'concerned neighbor'. But to be honest this is all they had & for all they know this 'neighbor' could' have been my jealous health visitor! My situation was made worse by 'admitting' at conference that the crying had occurred & it being HVs 'timed crying'. Normally there's no way to eradicate an at risk decision, it will remain on record, at least as a past concern- even when it ends. And all the agencies who attend will get copy of conference minutes/report & it will be uploaded to their agencies records too. The minutes are usually highly inaccurate too, as there is no 'minute taker'. I was asked to write notes on a piece of paper- I had already told them I couldn't as a migraine was preventing my sight & my carer was my mother- who was caring for my child! The professionals all wrote notes too, but mixed things up- especially who said what. They wrongly reported me saying HV comments & nothing of what I said was included! I had written a report to take to conference- as invite said all need to write a report- I thought this meant me too. There had literally been no explanation. At conference I find them alleging I had not wanted to see reports 48 hours before conference/go through them or procedure- this was total lies. I had asked to, but they had refused- yet no one believed me at conference. The chair merely asked socials worker & accepted her word that she had- records later proved this a lie. This is why taking a Dictaphone is highly recommended- I'd take 2 (1 in full view & 1 hidden as back up). Also even if you manage to later prove child was never at risk & policy wasn't followed they still refuse to remove them. But even if they do delete record of past protection plan, they will claim they can't force other agencies to remove from theirs.

You have been fitted up! This makes me so angry how easily they get away with this! I hate to say it but what you say tomorrow will probably make little difference, it didn't with me. I said everything that proved my child had never been at risk- they just ignored me. All they paid any attention to was professionals reports + all professionals around the table blindly agreeing with professionals reports- despite no proof. The professionals could literally have said I'd murdered someone, they invented such outrageous records. Whatever they put was literally just accept without needing anything to back it up- this is how conferences work! In the absence of another professional stating things are fine, explaining marks etc- professionals have been taught to assume the worst & bound by a code stating they can't ignore other professionals concerns & must support them! They will not use logic! All the professionals there are trained to ignore anything positive you say & only absorb what key professionals say. I fear they will still accept what is written in professionals report, no matter what you say- unless you have evidence from another professional. If given a protection plan this is equivalent to 'child at serious risk of harm' declaration & what they will be aiming for. If not you'll be given 'action plan'- which is more or less the same- but not technically going to affect career. I'm sure they have targets of kids they must give 'protection plans' too- with me they literally gave my child at risk decision purely by alleging I had depression! I got proof after the initial conference from the new social worker, who was not as bad as first! But by then you feel absolutely disgusted because they have got their way & slandered you. By having a social worker visit you & write in their records that all is well, then at the 3 monthly review you have a professional proving this & even over a period of time! You really need a professional on side. I still think it would go a long way to refuting professionals reports & leave them red faced if there's any way to get a community nurse or doctor to visit today & state marks are still present. Plus what they may be- surely you have a right to know if they are permanent/cause etc! Professionals would probably use some poncy Latin name for them. But also the fact you let someone in to see your child could go down well- as long as the person says all good things. After all you probably would prefer not to take your child to the conference! I took my toddler who was visibly happy/healthy- they made me put her in a playroom they didn't monitor, just with my Mother! The professionals could have checked her over them self, but not one of them even bothered to see her at all! The professional are clearly just pen pushers! Apparently they get away with doing these last minute/urgent conferences based on allegation 'it's believed the child is or is likely to be suffering significant harm' & is a child in need- but there my child was right under their nose & they completely ignored her! Then after they had got the pathetic piece of paper 'protection plan'- they refused to visit! The system makes no sense! If given protection plan, while it's active a warning will flash up on GPs screen- if you take your child to see them. But this is pathetic, if a person is really abusing their child, surely they just wouldn't take them to get medical help- indeed this could actually be used by a selfish person as a deterrent to seek help!

I know it sounds illogical but I would not provide them with any proof to hang me with. Photos of where this is suppose to have happened are you confirming it did. I would try to gloss over that detail if I were you. The longer you dwell on it the more they will use your admittance to hang you with! They will have calculated your response to bring pictures & admit you did it etc. Photos can be interpreted many ways. Professional opinion must be accepted as is- they will have that doctors report & it did not sound good. The best way to trump this is with a recent report from a nurse/doctor saying the marks are still present & should have disappeared by now if caused by you- so appear to be birth marks! If they can corroborate the marks still exist there's probably not even any need to admit anything- in fact doing so just digs you deeper! As far as I'm aware no parent is required to attend a conference, but most chose to so they can put their side across/defend self from any unexpected 'new' material! In theory there shouldn't be any, in practice there's often reports prepared by GP/school/carers etc listing child's health history- immunization etc. Which can include gossiping between agencies & social workers, who play Chinese whispers & add speculation under guise of factual info! If you have a job around children or vulnerable people, I think you'ill be aware a resulting 'protection plan' may result in employer being informed you've been found a risk to a child. I've found a place that say you can't take a Dictaphone to conference, but I honestly don't believe that! You can't force people to have to take notes at lightning speed! If you say the recording is for personal use to transcribe later I see no legal reason why not! The obvious reason to refuse is that it's well known conferences always result in everything said being taken out of context- hence admit nothing! I'm going to assume that you put your child first & don't really care more about your job or the conference. In this case, it will not be the end of the world whatever happens- they can't do anything serious if this is all they have. You should therefore focus more on maintaining your health so you can get well soon. After my child's conference all they proposed was fortnightly visits from social workers + got my mother to say she promised to always see my child everyday- which was already happening voluntarily, no need to formalize it. They made no effort to check if this happened! Actually having the protection plan seemed to make social services feel less responsible & surely puts kids at risk. Indeed all local social workers were on holiday immediately after & I had to keep calling to get them to visit me eventually- as I was desperate to prove they'd made a big mistake!

If the marks are birth/stretch marks, is there no way of getting him to a GP again tomorrow to show that they are still present & therefore prove this couldn't have been you? Surely GP must do a home visit if you request & can provide an instant home report to confirm what they are- you need a diagnosis if this is causing problems! Even if you can only get a health visitor or nurse to look at them, it would be invaluable to have a profesional confirm in writing that they are still present. I think it would count for a lot if you could get this & mmediately take copies- hand into social services. They will only doubt your word, not another professional! They will asume you don't have time to do this- but I think it's possible! If present at birth- why weren't they noted! You would hope a GP could tell the difference, but some birth marks do grow to look severe The problem with requesting it be postponed is, they'll be unlikely to unless you can provide very good reason. All invites will have been sent to GP/ Police/nurses etc & it would cause significant disturbance to them to cancel. By the sounds of it council were premature. But that will make little difference to their dislike of admitting this & disrupting other professionals, who they have to work closely with. They would rather inconvenience/harass you rather than lose face. You can make requests but they don't have to acknowledge them. However if you have made them officially in writing & have proof they have received them- it will strengthen your case if they refuse. If they are taking this to conference usually they have already decided to give the child a protection plan- they think they have enough evidence. You therefore need to show them something that trumps their evidence, such as confirmation the GP was wrong. Also don't assume this was your neighbor, what about the escort? Expect professionals to have mixed facts up, during their long game of Chinese whispers that led to conference being authorized. Where the report says they couldn't examine due to poor cooperation- you need to ensure they are aware this was your child refusing- not you. Things like this often get mixed up by those who have no idea what it's like to have a disabled child & just assume the parent is the root of all problems. It's interesting that they say 24 hours. After my run in with social services, my council claimed as a result of my complaint they were including parent leaflet explaining procedure & that parents should see reports minimum of 48 hours before a conference! It seems a bit unfair that some are making up own rules! I was not aware that council could refuse requests for respite care, did you make the request in writing? Everything needs to be in writing & sent recorded delivery- obtaining support letter from GP helps too. if you could prove genuine need that you have a severely disabled child- surely you qualify & their opinion doesn't matter. If they can't provide care, they should at least refer you to a charity that can- if they aren't doing that it seems dodgy. Councils can claim they give budget to charities to provide services- but when you need that service you should get referral! Council have been given a budget for it, how do they account for it's whereabouts if they aren't spending it on the families that need it- where's it going! IF ALL ELSE FAILS CALL THEIR BLUFF: MARCH INTO SOCIAL SERVICES TOMORROW DEMANDING A PERMANENT SOCIAL WORKER OR SUPPORT WORKER FOR YOUR CHILD! THIS IS THE LAST THING THEY WILL BE EXPECTING & HAVING TO STATE YOU DID THIS TO THE CONFERENCE WOULD LEAVE THEM RED FACED! You may actually get one who instead of trying to slander you, helps your family by providing info about rest-bite care. It was down to my support worker that I got a diagnosis of aspergers at 31- they can sometimes be useful.

Number one tip: Phone council & ask if you can have the conference recorded. Plus that you intend to record it too! They may say no, but they can't stop you doing so. You can just say you are doing so in order to properly transcribe it later! I didn't do this & the factual record of conference contained not a single truthful word- even my child's name was wrong! It was full of allegation/wild speculation, said as if proven or coming from witness or me. Conversation had been mixed up, wrongly labelled as if I'd said the allegations 'keeps child awake to keep her company'. This was a bigoted social worker- who got this just from child clearly teething. She judged me by her own standards- I have autism & would never deliberately seek out company- happy with my own!

Do you have a copy of GP reports stating no injury- this is important. Also be aware they assess the mental state of child & don't tell you- it's important to know what they put. Can you get a copy of any such records in time? I would suggest you can't & that's why they are rushing this- so you don't have time! Be forceful with council! They have not given you chance to do anything! State in writing also that you have fully complied & there's no proof/reason to assume you would refuse visits etc- if they wish! I wished I booked an appointment with my GP as they were also my child's, but I doubt they'd have discussed anything anyway. Though you'd have thought they were duty bound to- if you wish to maybe you could ask them "do you suggest hat I need any help?" (must admit I only speak with GPs with hidden dictation machine on now) Try to see what their views/agenda are? State to council that you intend to provide reports & need more time- show you are willing to provide all factual info you can & are entitled to do so. I often wonder what the point of these conferences are- just to slander us I suspect! Sadly social workers aren't held to account for consequences of wrongfully calling conferences- such as depression/suicide etc. The professionals past actions & conference itself caused me severe depression/suicidal thoughts, where there were previously none. In effect they brought on poor health, by continually harassing me & out of the blue claiming I was depressed & neglecting child. All this cost them was a pathetic £5000 compensation & deleting all record of protection plan ever having been issued (at least in their records!) All this took 5 years. Always best to try putting great effort into preventing it being allowed to convene!

First step in you absolutely need to see the social workers report before they proceed to conference. If you haven't seen it, immediately call up council as soon as you can to report failure to supply it. Maybe ask to speak to conference chair immediately (write a letter confirming non-receipt/date & sign- if you can't give it to conference chair in person- make sure you're give a receipt by reception & call back later to make sure they got it). You are entitled to see ALL relevant reports, they can't keep them from you to protect others identities- they should black out names etc. Chances are if you haven't been given it, the social worker is still writing it, which itself is very bad practice. My experience was going to conference without proper procedures being followed & permission had been granted for the conference before any reports had been written or there was any evidence of any risk! IT'S TOO LATE WAITING UNTIL THE ACTUAL CONFERENCE TO STATE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN REPORTS- PROFESSIONALS WILL LIE & YOU WILL BE IGNORED!Allegation or bigoted assumption isn't enough to go to conference with. There needs to be reason to suspect serious risk, a bigoted neighbors word is still not enough! Even a bigoted social workers word isn't enough! The best thing to do is try to prevent the conference taking place at all, by showing it's in breech of law. It doesn't sound like they technically have enough to go to conference & are only doing so using bigoted professional opinion again! By hurrying you into conference you have no time to stop them making up lies to get access to your child. All they care about is getting access to your child & wasting their budget on that! In my experience the reason cases like baby p exist is because they are too busy wasting resources on those whose lifestyles they simply don't approve of eg single/unemployed & not enough time going after deadly bullies. I didn't know about reports so couldn't ask to see or know I was entitled to see them. Only at conference hearing them falsely claim they had shown me & only then realizing I should have been shown social worker & health visitors report at least 48 hours before the conference. Them showing you 10 minutes before the conference or even only during it- isn't adequate! Although social worker & HV were apparently supposed to show me I was not able to get GP to admit they should've shown me in advance. Once you obtain reports you should be able to see what their agenda is & you then know what routes are open! And what they hope to achieve by just giving your child a protection plan & maybe visiting when they can be bothered or have resources! If you or your child has a disability, they use this even more so as an excuse to get away with harassing you. As my child isn't disabled, I'm disabled- I can home educate her. If it was the other way around they would've forced me to send her to school. Social workers are mostly stupid, they are easily fooled with an act. Their work is still littered with outdated rhetoric. Such as demonizing single Mums & wrongly stating 2 parent families are best. This originated from parishes who had to pay for babies born to single mums. Parishes disliked this & when fathers were known they would force them to marry & keep the Mum- so they didn't have to. Most professional just want to tick boxes & hear the right lingo- they have no idea they are being played by the system. Some genuinely believe they are helping & will claim you are the one who is closed minded! Your neighbor has probably had runs in with SS & knows exactly what lingo to use to get professionals all worked up to. I was amazed at the wild imagination SS already have!

I thought you would say that. Instead of getting back to me, you may be better writing to your GP instead. I use voice recognition due to pain of joins/fatigue/visual disturbances etc. It wasn't a cheap option & caused many problems to get + isn't 100% reliable. And if you wish to use it to fill out forms, it's often incompatible. I have problems with my voice stammering etc so even this route isn't always open to me. You really should explain all your personal difficulties to your GP in clear written detail (recorded delivery). Even then there's no guarantee they will accept them- but if you don't try there's no chance they will. If you do try; at least there's a paper trail of your claims- which may be invaluable to use as evidence if needing to appeal later.

I'm not sure why you would have to pretend it's not bad to your GP? If you can tell us, why can't you write to GP explaining what happens- eg daily sprains. I'm not sure how you even know what EDL/HMS is though, I'd never heard of it. If you have a family history of it that may help. I've found that GPs really don't like public doing their job for them & they like you to present with the exact symptoms of a condition all nice & neat- then send you off to be diagnosed by specialist who confirms it. They really don't seem to want to acknowledge anything that doesn't fit in with this. I really think you need to write to your GP & explain the extent of your daily difficulties. If this is just 1 condition/problem it shouldn't be too difficult to get across all your daily issues. But I'm certainly no expert.

I know what you mean. I'd probably be dead if it wasn't for voice recognition technology to help type what I say & my daughter to help me work it. It's very bad that society is still geared that if you can't communicate by phone/face-to-face in the demanded way, that you are simply ignored & not given priority. I hate to think of all the poor people who must die alone undiscovered for years because they weren't able to communicate or afford voice recognition etc.

The problem lies in when you first informed them of the difficulty! It's not even enough to have been diagnosed with a condition- you have to tell them exactly how it affects you (as if they didn't know). I only informed my GP in March & he only acknowledges I'm unable to go out since around this time onward. Plus I had to keep sending in fitness for work request continually stating not been out- bills paid by direct debit etc. After 6 months of doing this I also sent in my request for him to provide a letter for ATOS stating need home assessment. I also sent GP a letter I received from DWP accepting good cause for not attending on this occasion from first missed ATOS appointment, but DWP letter stated I'd have to attend when asked again by ATOS. Sending this letter to the GP proves you have an undeniable genuine need for proof you can't attend & if he fails to respond he could get in trouble. The GP sent me a letter stating I can't get to the assessment + my medical history. Unfortunately my GP doesn't acknowledge aspergers as a condition & didn't list this- but DWP already had my aspergers report (not that it made any difference to them).

I manged to get my GP to send me a letter stating I hadn't been out in X months (usually over 6 months) & can't get to an ATOS centre. They also suddenly added agoraphobia to my sick note. But unfortunately you do have to persist & go into detail about your problems. You also needed some sort of record to state you haven't been out eg every time you send a letter (+SAE) requesting a sick note, state you were unable to get in to see them as you have not been out since X. From this they will have at least time/dated evidence- it won't just be a sudden statement of convenience.

You have only done a few posts & not provided any identifiable info as far as I'm aware- not sure why you don't want to say? You could always just use this account to get help with this & then create another one with a different email if you need other support & don't wish to be judged? Unless you fear being traced by admin from IP address for some reason? I can relate to your feeling of GPs playing piggy in the middle. With complex, hard to prove problems the overriding fear they probably have is what if this person is faking it. Problems with communication do not help with evidence gathering to try & disprove this either. A GP will not want to do anything that they know may be used to automatically hand you a get out of jail free card. As if at any point it's later stated that you are fit to work, it will be seen as them making a wrong judgement. GPs know full well that the nature of an ATOS assessment would find a corpse fit for work, so it must be very hard for them to feel confident doing anything that may imply you are otherwise.

Hello, I did have a support worker for over 5 years, but he passed me over to 'Just Advocacy'. As he claimed his 'transform' was a charity only suppose to help clients for no more than 2 years. 'Just advocacy' were useless & so was complaining to the boss. I've not been helped by mental health team, as I managed to get in for a few assessments several years ago- when forced to in relation to other issues. I was desperate to deny having problems, as my local social services were harassing me & got my child put on at risk register, by claiming I had mental health problems that put her at risk. I think they were confused & thought I may have had some kind of PND. Because I'd never seen a GP for anything before conceiving my child via at home sperm donation + only saw them from 20wks, which they also didn't like. SS harassed me from pre-birth of my child, until my child was 5 (now 7). I feared loosing my child & was forced to deny problems- because SS refused to acknowledge me informing them I'd put measures in place for my child. My support worker helped me with this complaint (though I had to be careful, as I knew he could also be dangerous & report things- which he did) & it took 5 years to get SS to delete wrongful at risk registration. In that time my support worker suggested I go to a MH assessment & he accompanied me. I did tell them I wanted to kill myself & of the harassment. But I find communication extremely difficult & couldn't get across most of my problems, nor was I asked. They diagnosed moderate depression 3 years ago. I hadn't been diagnosed with aspergers at the time, but did tell them I wouldn't be able to communicate by phone/talking. But all they gave me was a leaflet for 'talking therapies' (I'd said was useless to me) + mental health/crisis number (also useless). I was expected to communicate verbally with MH team, but had said I would be unable to. My support worker had offered to go with me to see my GP, but I really don't think the support worker ever understood how difficult going out was physically/mentally (due to dozens of problems). He did tend to make odd assumptions & I never understood what he was saying & he would get cross if I stated that. He suggested I be tested for aspergers & went with me, but I don't think he acknowledged the severity or my numerous other problems. This was made worse by the fact I lived in the Town where my support worker worked & I was forced to go out a few times. And always on those few times- he was floating about & saw me. He didn't see after when being out caused me to close down for weeks & I couldn't think or do anything. I have no support & haven't been out in about 8 months (but I only ever went out rarely before this). Although my support worker did ask me of my employment career which included shop work 11 years ago, what he didn't see is that I was always off sick, never on time & was only in briefly when no people were around (this was same with school & college). The college I went to was full of immigrants who kept to them self & never communicated with me. The NVQ was basically given just for copying a file & even that I found hard. My aspergers test concluded I was on higher intelligence scale just from: Showing me some usual words as flash cards & getting me to say them. I did confess that I only knew them because I'd been interest in unusual words, but didn't know what they meant. I think I would have been diagnosed with proper autism, if I also hadn't spoken before 2 years old. Which I hadn't & I know my mother put this on parent questionnaire. But mid way through assessment they said they needed to phone my mother to see if I hadn't- pretending they hadn't seen it! My mother also hadn't been able to answer some questions as it was 30 years ago & she couldn't remember- but the score didn't acknowledge this! My mother also dislikes talking with professionals/strangers, though no where near as badly as me, I asked them not to (she'd have berated me). I told my mother of my aspergers diagnosis after, but she doesn't know what it is & doesn't want to know. My aspergers diagnosis letter, just advised me to read aspergirls (I'd said I never read books, but they misreported this in report also). Plus suggested I go to talking therapies/MH team- all things I'd made clear I wouldn't be able to do! So in summary- if you do nothing you are not heard. if you force yourself to see them, they then claim you can communicate how they demand & they refuse to communicate unless you do! I informed my GP by letters in detail of all my problems several times, including I'm unable to communicate face-to-face or by phone & why. So what did he do- send me another talking therapies leaflet & blood test invite- useless (I sent another letter after telling him this was not helpful & why- but no reply)! I also informed him that due to his late reply my ESA keeps being stopped & I have to live off my DLA- so I can't employ a carer. I let him know that my mother refuses to help me when I can't give her the carers allowance, but the help she provides to me is no where near what I need anyway. She's 66 & also provides a lot of care for my child/has her own life. I feel like I can't change GP because I'm in a position of him only letting me have 1 month sick notes (even though he's been doing these for over a year & must know my condition won't change). I was also told when joining that he doesn't do sick notes for new patients, only those he's seen several times (at the time I didn't need sick notes). But I fear this will be how other GPs are & so I have no choice of being able to change, because I know ESA will be stopped right away. I also find change/new people impossible to cope with.

That's really very typical of agencies. My local social services got my child wrongly put on at risk register by doing the above. They had wrongly copied word for word what another professional who had no communication with my family or any facts at all prior to making 'conclusion'. Any yes that would be wrong, in fact the authority was ordered to delete records by the Information Commissioners Office/Local Government Ombudsman & pay out compo. But in your case I don't think it can be said that the information isn't a properly formed opinion, just because it mirrors the patients evidence given by them self. It seems like they are trying to use a law intended to protect you; against you (not for its intended use). After all the GP is allowed to make up their own mind based on evidence you present to them, you may communicate how you wish & with the aids you need to do so (in this case a phone). At a face-to-face consultation all the GP would likely have done is listen to what you had to say anyway, so I see little excuse to try to claim verbal or written evidence presented to the GP to analyze must always be false, simply if it is copied word for word- the obvious answer may just be that the GP accepted it to be an accurate account. I believe the excuse they are trying to fob you off with is intended for third party evidence, not your case! Also if the GP had any reason to doubt your account, they could have asked for more verbal information from you- which is all they usually seem to do at a consultation anyway! Don't let them get away with that. It was pointed out to me hundreds of times by NHS & GP legal team that a GP is not required to verify the information given to them 'if they believe in good faith that it is a true/accurate account' eg social worker report- "X never goes out". A GP basically seems to have absolute power to be the decider over whether they will/not accept statements or self testimonials. They definitely don't need undeniable proof! And your GP will claim they have verified what they put & followed the code of conduct, otherwise they would be in trouble! If you spoke to them, they had opportunity to question you for verification purposes if in doubt- so I don't see the problem here! ATOS can't disagree with the GPs conclusion, simply because they don't like it or can't find evidence to substantiate it. GPs rarely record every conversation word for word & it will just be accepted that they asked the right questions to verify what is claimed. I think ATOS are trying it on, to see if they can get away with midleading you!

My support worker filled out my old ESA claim over a year ago & I hadn't communicated with ATOS since missed appointment in Feb. Now magically as I send in updated ESA claim form, I get home assessment letter from ATOS. As if they are really desperate to be able to work off the older inferior less detailed claim form. I feel it would be a mistake to go ahead, as my updated form was only sent off a week before ATOS letter received. The ATOS letter makes no note of my request for any assessment to be recorded by the assessor using official professional recording equipment. Plus I'd put that a symptom of my Asperger Syndrome is that I can't answer the phone, yet the ATOS letter says I may phone them if I have a problem! Plus it says the assessor will phone me to arrange a time to visit. I never answer my phone to anyone apart from my Mother, so they will be unable to do that. I think they tried to phone several times a few weeks ago & have proof I don't answer! I'm not sure what to make of this. Are they ignoring my ESA claim form & should I respond by ignoring them? In my ESA form I explained that I'd be unable to answer the door to an assessor & that I have no one able to help me. Also as my ESA keeps being stopped when my 1 month sick note runs out & GP is late to respond, I have to live off my DLA & therefore have never been able to feel secure enough to get a proper carer who I can rely on to help me. I never have visitors & am housebound. This is really making my blackouts & absences worse, I really feel like punching ATOS now. I can't even see my GP & he refuses to visit me, receptionist explained last year the GP only visits the very ill/ housebound. I explained that was me, but they still refused! So I haven't seen GP in getting on for a year. But to be honest if everyone else's GP is as useless as that one, I don't know how he has any patients left- I can't get any meds because he will not communicate with me. He knows I can't change surgery because a new GP will not issue a sick note without allegedly seeing me or getting to know me! I would say my GP knows nothing about me anyway, even though I've tried. He will only communicate via face-to-face & I can't do that. I've used voice recognition technology to write to him several times & explain numerous problems (which he ignores & just sends invite to see him!). I don't know anything about what is normal regarding how to deal with GPs, I have no idea how anyone copes- GPs seem rather useless. I don't know why people rave on about GPs, if this is suppose to be someone on my side, I fear to think what ATOS will do.

Regular contact is something I can't do for many many reasons. Which I couldn't even communicate. But I did force myself to go in every 4-6 weeks over 3 years & all they did was deal with migraine/depression- totally ignoring other problems reported. So I decided after that not to bother seeing them. Also I had no idea how often I was suppose to go in they literally gave me a prescription & that was it- no advice or anything. I hate talking to people & couldn't ask. I was too scared/anxious/panicked to communicate even when I had gone + I had to be taken by family. Do they actually expect me to come into the surgery & let them see my problems eg blackout in front of them! I couldn't even let my support worker see, I had to start an argument & ask him to leave, when I felt it was going to happen. Sorry there's a distinct possibility that I'm babbling now, due to insomnia. I have't slept in 4 days, I need to try to grab a couple of hours too.