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Best mainstream secondary school for kids with ADHD/Autism?

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Hi there

 

My son is currently in Year 8 at King Edward VII School, Sheffield but we are looking at a transfer to a different mainstream secondary within Sheffield due to them being so unsupportive of his special needs. He doesn't have a statement/EHC plan (applied to be assessed for one but was refused) so it would have to be a mainstream school.

 

Basically he was diagnosed with ASD age 7 and currently being assessed for ADHD (which he has all the symptoms of). The staff at his current school have told him he can control the way he behaves (which he clearly cannot), told him he "does not need to make silly noises" (verbal stimming), given him detentions for things relating to his special needs such as shouting out the answer to a question, put him into isolation which exacerbates symptoms, seem to skip steps in the behaviour policy in order to keep him out of class (he has been removed from class within a minute of arriving for no justifiable reason), denied him use of timeout card (enables him to leave class for a few minutes when he finds it too much), the list goes on. They do not seem to have a clue about special needs.

 

Does anyone with children with ADHD/ASD but no EHC plan have any recommendations of good supportive schools with understanding and patient staff? Thinking King Ecgbert's may be a good option as they have an Integrated Resource (which he would not be able to attend because he has no EHCP but means they will deal with SEN kids all the time and understand their needs). Also schools to avoid if possible!

 

Thanks in advance

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2 in Doncaster

1 Near Mexborough...not sure if any in Sheff(??)

 

 

Robert Ogden School - Part of the NAS Education Group

Clayton Lane,

Thurnscoe,

South Yorkshire,

S63 OBG

 

Telephone

01709 874443

 

---------- Post added 22-09-2017 at 18:33 ----------

 

Also private http://www.rmt.org/brantwood/

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Thanks for your reply but looking for a mainstream school rather than special school - can't get into a special school as my son doesn't have an EHC plan. Brantwood looks like a great supportive school though :-)

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Hi. My son in Y8 at Birley Academy. Luckily he does have an ech plan so is in the IR there but when I first looked round I wasnt sure if he would or not. I was impressed with the support for children with sen there who weren't in the IR they seemed to be really considerate. Like having passes to leave lesso 5 mins early to avoid crowds and a place callec The Hub where they are welcome to go if they need a bit if quiet time. Id say definately worth a look.

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Hi PurpleKitty, I just came across your post whilst googling and felt compelled to register to reply to your post, if your son has an ASD diagnosis, he has the right to have an EHC plan and special support. The Local Authority has a duty to ensure that he has equal access to an education and this for him may include sensory Occupational therapy, speech and language therapy even if he is very verbal as he will need lots of support with language and understanding, possibly behavioural support and a learning Support Assistant if in mainstream. This is not a pipe dream but what generally ASD kids need to give them equal access to an education.  I would recommend in the first instance that you contact a good parents advocate like Eirwen Grenfell Essam who will provide you with all the help and information you need to ensure your son is properly supported. Other sources of advice include SOSSEN and the IPSEA websites and helplines. It is worth highlighting that when a Local Authority refuses to assess, this gives you an automatic right to appeal at SEND tribunal, this can often be funded through legal help, this may all seem overwhelming at first but it isn’t once you’ve done it and as I say, Eirwen is amazing and can guide you through this process (it’s a charity).I really hope this helps, I would also quickly recommend the ABA forum on yahoo, ABA is essentially behavioural therapy, it has its critics but that’s not the point of me making you aware of this forum as  it’s most important function is information exchange between parents of children with ASD, many of whom are also going through the same thing. 

 

All the best, 

 

Helen

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