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Original poster

To ask quick SEN question - SATs

37 replies

Evermore1 · 28/01/2025 22:34

Just need some knowledge about children's or parent' rights in relation to SATs.
My 10 year old child is in year 6 and is dyslexic with a 4 year reading delay. But she is very bright, engaged, extremely articulate with excellent vocabulary and understanding, and she is clever. However, she is reading at year 2 level because of her dyslexia.
School have removed her from all SATs revision classes and anything SATs related without informing me. I've found out from other mums that their children have been attending extra sessions at school for SATs practice, but my DD has not been included, but school haven't discussed it with me.
I've now found out school have decided she's not doing her SATs.
She brought home a timetable yesterday and told me she'd been given it at school and was told she would be doing it whilst the rest of her year practice their SATs. It says things like 'Go in to the nursery and play with the nursery children' (the school has a nursery attached to it), and 'Craft', etc.
DD is today stating that she wants to do her SATs, she says she wants to be included and that she doesn't want to be singled out from the rest of her year group. She has been very clear about this with me today when I discussed it with her.
What I need to know is, do I as her parent have any rights about her doing SATs? Does she as a pupil have any rights? Or does the school have the authority to remove her from performing in SATs, and the authority to remove her from all the lessons and extra sessions the other children are having in preparation for sitting their SATs?
I need to be clear about things before I approach the school about this.
I am really unhappy with the way my DD is being dealt with, but I want to be accurate about the facts and what our rights our versus what the school's rights are.
Thank you to anyone out there who knows more than me about this!

OP posts:
lifeturnsonadime · 28/01/2025 23:02

Evermore1 · 28/01/2025 22:58

That's the thing, I don't know whether it is in her best interests or not.
I know she won't be able to read the test papers fluently. But I know that if someone read questions to her she'd be able to verbally answer fluently.
She was extremely clear today that she does not want to be singled out from the rest of her peers. She spoke eloquently and with conviction about her reasons for wanting to join in with SATs and to not be removed from them. She fully understands the difficulties of her dyslexia, she is not under any illusions about this. She knows her reading age is several years behind her peers. But she says she does not want to be removed from what everyone else in her year is doing, and she is resolute about this!

Edited
Show quote history

Then she should not be excluded on the basis of her differences because that's only in the interests of the school.

Have you spoken to her about how she will feel if she gets lower marks or can't answer questions though? Because she may become demoralised.

How much help are you getting from school with her needs? If she is being excluded it is a real sign that she needs additional support. Putting her in the nursery and ignoring her to focus on the children who do not have additional needs is totally unacceptable.

What I would say is don't despair about SATS . They genuinely are not important. My eldest didn't sit them and got 3 As at A Level's last year and is now at university.

Whatever you do if she does sit them don't put her under any pressure.

crumblingschools · 28/01/2025 23:01

@Evermore1 you can't have a reader for the reading exam

Has she had any reasonable adjustments put in place at all whilst at school?

Takeachance18 · 28/01/2025 23:00

Schools make the decision based on if a child is working at the key stage, so if still key stage 1, not appropriate to take the SATS. However, 5 months out from them, she shouldn't be on such an alternative curriculum they should be supporting her catch up - this is what you should be requesting, that she is being taught, a broad and balanced curriculum, with her peers, appropriate scaffolding. Otherwise she will become further behind. I would also apply for an EHCP, if she doesn't have one already as a parent and include this as the reason to apply, that she is not being included in her year group and therefore must require support beyond that normally available which the school is not providing. Fair enough the week of SATS, but should not be any other time during normal school hours.

Original poster
Evermore1 · 28/01/2025 22:58

lifeturnsonadime · 28/01/2025 22:37

Oh goodness OP. I pulled my children out of the SATS because they weren't coping with the workload because of SEN and they don't mean anything other than to the school records.

BUT if your DD wants to do SATS then the school shouldn't imo be preventing her from sitting them just to ensure their own results meet targets. I am sure that this amounts to discrimination.

if you are sure it is in your daughters best interests to sit them I'd put my foot down. Otherwise I'd say you are not prepared for her to attend school and be 'othered' but you can see she will struggle so she will not be attending school on those days.

Edited

That's the thing, I don't know whether it is in her best interests or not.
I know she won't be able to read the test papers fluently. But I know that if someone read questions to her she'd be able to verbally answer fluently.
She was extremely clear today that she does not want to be singled out from the rest of her peers. She spoke eloquently and with conviction about her reasons for wanting to join in with SATs and to not be removed from them. She fully understands the difficulties of her dyslexia, she is not under any illusions about this. She knows her reading age is several years behind her peers. But she says she does not want to be removed from what everyone else in her year is doing, and she is resolute about this!

OP posts:
Postchristmasblah · 28/01/2025 22:56

I think I perhaps agree with her not sitting the SATs but in your shoes I would he protesting very loudly at her being excluded from the rest of the school activity. I have a dyslexic child and I would expect him to prepare for and not sit the exams in these circumstances.

DelphiniumBlue · 28/01/2025 22:51

I 'd suggest a meeting with the teacher, SENDCO and Head. It can't be right to exclude a child like this. Your child is entitled to an education following the curriculum, she can't just be sent off to play in nursery for the next term. The school may decide not to submit her, although this is actually quite hard to justify, but she could still be in class with her peers, possibly doing differentiated work, possibly even sitting mock SATs instead of the real thing, if it would be best for her.
Certainly a big step like this needs to be discussed with you.
If it is just her reading that is the problem, she could sit SATs with a reader or a scribe -a reader is permissible for all the papers except the reading paper.
Your first step is to discuss it with the school. If they will not offer a reasonable compromise, then take it up with the Chair of Governors.
SATs practice will be daily from now until mid- May. That is too long for your DD not to be learning.

Original poster
Evermore1 · 28/01/2025 22:50

skelter83 · 28/01/2025 22:40

What adjustments have they put in place for your daughter to access the reading papers? Are they putting her in for her maths?

They haven't put any adjustments in place for her. They have simply removed her. Without me agreeing to it.
No they are not putting her in for maths either. She also has Dyscalculia.

OP posts:
crumblingschools · 28/01/2025 22:41

Schools usually don’t put children into Y6 SATS if they are working at KS1 level. This doesn’t help their results so they won’t be doing it for that reason.

They should have spoken to you though

skelter83 · 28/01/2025 22:40

What adjustments have they put in place for your daughter to access the reading papers? Are they putting her in for her maths?

tourdefrance · 28/01/2025 22:37

I would write to the head and the governor with responsibility for special needs and complain. No idea what 'rights' you have, but it sounds awfully like the school is trying to improve their statistics.
We agreed mutually that DS2 (autistic) would not do SATS in year 2 and year 6 SATS were cancelled due to Covid.

lifeturnsonadime · 28/01/2025 22:37

Oh goodness OP. I pulled my children out of the SATS because they weren't coping with the workload because of SEN and they don't mean anything other than to the school records.

BUT if your DD wants to do SATS then the school shouldn't imo be preventing her from sitting them just to ensure their own results meet targets. I am sure that this amounts to discrimination.

if you are sure it is in your daughters best interests to sit them I'd put my foot down. Otherwise I'd say you are not prepared for her to attend school and be 'othered' but you can see she will struggle so she will not be attending school on those days.

Theunamedcat · 28/01/2025 22:36

As far as I was aware school should have discussed this with you first they discussed it with me and I requested they removed him from the sats