The Westside Regional Center (WRC) guide

How do I reach Westside Regional Center?

How do I find my service coordinator?

• Write, don’t just call.Westside emails end in @westsiderc.org, so an old message from your coordinator will show their address. Westside’s family booklet says a written request helps.
• Allow 2 business days.Westside’s family booklet says coordinators answer calls and emails within 2 business days. On voicemail, say your name, your number and why you called.
• No call back? Ask for the Counselor of the Day.Call (310) 258-4000 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. and ask for the Counselor of the Day. Tell the front desk the age of the person who gets services, so your call reaches the right team.
• Or ask for the supervisor.Westside’s FAQ says to tell the front desk you need your coordinator’s supervisor. Each unit also has a Program Manager you can call. There’s no staff list online, so ask the front desk for names.
• Keep a call log.Westside’s booklet suggests a call log. Note the date, the name and what was said for each call and email. If a week goes by and something is still waiting, call for an update.
• Want someone else?Tell your coordinator or their supervisor you’d like someone new. Westside says your case then moves to another coordinator. The law says a coordinator stays only when everyone agrees.

What does Westside Regional Center pay for?

• Adaptive skills trainingA professional comes to your home and teaches everyday skills, so they can do more without help.
• RespiteSomeone looks after your family member for a few hours, so you can take a break.
• Behavior servicesSupport for behaviors that get in the way of daily life.
• Day programsWeekday programs where adults learn and stay busy.
• Help living on your ownSupport for adults in their own apartment or home.
• Social recreation and campClasses, sports, camps and outings.
• RidesGetting to and from programs.
• DiapersFor kids age 3 and up.

Westside can’t pay for what another agency should. School, insurance, Medi-Cal and IHSS come first.

How do I get adaptive skills training through Westside?

1. Put it in writing.Email your coordinator that you’d like adaptive skills training from Aldera added to the plan, and copy team@aldera.org. See the email.
2. No need to wait a year.Westside says your plan can be changed or added to at any time. Once you ask, the plan meeting has to happen within 30 days, or 7 if it’s needed for health and safety or to keep someone living at home.
3. Switching providers is allowed.Not happy with a provider you have now? Westside says to tell your coordinator which provider you want instead, and your coordinator arranges it.
4. We come to your home.When it’s approved, we visit, get to know your family member and choose the first goals together. The hours come out of those visits.

Westside adds an approved service to your IPP, sometimes as an addendum. Its booklet says nothing it pays for starts until you sign the IPP agreement sheet, so sign it soon.

How do I get a copy of the psychological report or IPP from Westside?

• Email your coordinator.Name the report you need, or ask for the whole file. Westside shares records only with the OK of the client or their legal guardian. If your family member is an adult, they may need to sign the request.
• Westside has 3 business days.You can ask by phone, in person or in writing. By law, Westside must let you look at the file within 3 business days. It may charge only what copies cost, never a search fee, and nothing if you can’t afford it.
• Your IPP.Westside’s booklet says your coordinator sends the written IPP within 30 days of the meeting. If it doesn’t come, ask; by law it’s due within 45 days of your request. Westside says a translated IPP takes about 8 business days.
• Using it for IHSS or SSI.Westside’s booklet says you can share the IPP with other offices when you apply for help. IHSS uses a health form, the SOC 873, signed by a licensed professional. The county can also take an IPP with the same facts. For SSI, Social Security wants recent reports and school records. If your family member doesn't see danger, the same papers can back up a request for IHSS protective supervision. A parent can also become the paid IHSS provider.

How do I get school support on the Westside?

1. Put the request on paper.Write a dated letter or email asking for a special education assessment, and list your concerns. If writing is hard, school staff must help you.
2. Expect an answer in 15 days.The district has 15 days to send an assessment plan, or a letter saying why it won’t test. Breaks longer than 5 school days aren’t counted.
3. Sign, then 60 days.The 60 days to test and hold the IEP meeting begin when the district gets your signed plan.
4. Invite your coordinator.Anyone with knowledge of your child can come to the IEP with you. Westside tells families to invite their coordinator. If the coordinator can’t come, they can pass the request to Education Support Services.
5. Leaving Early Start at 3.At 30 to 32 months, you meet with your Early Start coordinator and the school district to plan the move. The district must hold the IEP before the 3rd birthday.

Where to send your request

• Los Angeles Unified (LAUSD)Give your written request to the principal. For help, call LAUSD’s special education call center at (213) 241-6701; Region West’s office is (310) 235-3700.
• Santa Monica-Malibu UnifiedWrite to the special education contact at your local school. The district’s special education line is (310) 450-8338 ext. 70210, and it can put you in touch with a parent volunteer through its Parent Resource Network.
• Culver City UnifiedCulver City says the request must be in writing, and the school answers within 15 days. To find the right person, call the special education office at (310) 842-4220 ext. 4249.
• Beverly Hills UnifiedCall Student Services at (310) 551-5100 ext. 2226. After your written request, the school’s special education team takes it up within 15 days.
• Inglewood UnifiedAsk in writing at your local school. The special education office is (310) 419-2775, and ext. 2787 is the program specialist for preschool and Westside Regional Center cases.
• South Bay districtsThe districts from Hawthorne to El Segundo share the Southwest SELPA, (310) 263-3700. Send the written request yourself: one from an outside agency, like a Regional Center, goes to a school team first.

Westside’s monthly IEP support group, Informed Education Partners, meets in English and Spanish on the first Thursday evening.

How do I become a Westside Regional Center client?

The steps

1. Apply online.Start with Westside’s online application. For questions or help with the form, call intake at (310) 258-4096.
2. Westside gets to know you.Expect an intake interview and a psychological assessment. It’s free.
3. Westside decides.It can take up to 120 days. A 3- or 4-year-old can sometimes qualify before getting a diagnosis.

Who qualifies, in more detail: our eligibility page.

Where can parents get free help?

• Westside Family Resource and Empowerment Center.Parents and family members who’ve been there run it, and it’s free. It’s in the same building as Westside Regional Center, and visits are by appointment. Email westsidefrec@westsiderc.org, or read about it.

Quick answers