Secondary school - what adjustments has yours made for your ASC child?

[AllTheGoodOnesAreTaken]

Just trying to get an idea. Thanks

That’s sounds brill @Crazyducklady i hope it enables your children to thrive.
I find it frustrating that often small adjustments can have such a big difference we only survived primary in the last year because one teacher “got her” and luckily she was part of the ks2 leadership team. Other teachers just keep indicating it’s just post covid anxiety stuff until her ASD assessment was confirmed 🙄but still I got the impression we were not believed fully of the level of difficulties she was having.

@MermaidSwimming99 in my experience it’s the anxious masking girls who have the hardest times getting the help they need

We ended up taking a completely different route through education because of the anxiety. Just ensure she knows you’re there come what may and she is your priority and you’ll do fine

@MermaidSwimming99 having a supportive team around your child is crucial. It makes me so sad to hear that your DD’s difficulties are not being taken as seriously as they should be.

I’m so fortunate that my boys are thriving. My eldest already has his exam dispensations in place for his GCSEs at the end of Yr 11. It’s not something I need to even worry about. My youngest will be following an alternative curriculum - same outcomes, different way of getting there, in some subjects as his PDA makes a traditional route very tricky for him at times.

For your lovely girl to achieve her best they should be putting the best support around her possible. This is often quality first teaching with a few well planned additional interventions but they need to actually be planned, recorded, shared and monitored in order for them to be effective and this should be done in a meeting with you, your DD, her tutor, the SENDCO and her TA or the TA most often with Yr 7 if she doesn’t have 1-1. It should then be reviewed before half term. This is bare minimum for a SEND child.

Thanks you have given me the confidence to keep being proactive with the send team on the support she needs to thrive.

@MermaidSwimming99 If DD struggles to attend school again or attends but is struggling apply for an EHCNA. The threshold for an EHCP is relatively low - a) has or may have SEN, and b) may need SEN provision to be made via an EHCP.

Separate to the EHCP process if DD can’t attend school full time the LA have a statutory duty to provide alternative education. This provision should begin once it is clear DD will miss 15 days - the days don’t need to have already been missed and don’t need to be consecutive.

Gosh this thread has really made me think - in a good way.

I have a DS (ADHD, anxiety and will be assessed for ASD). He has an EHCP with 1:1 in lessons, having had a brilliant teacher for 2 years where he was managing well in primary, it all fell apart in year 5. Even with EHcP I still spend entire time fighting to get things implemented.

Because of primary I’d kind of thought he’d need to find some smaller provision as wouldn’t manage mainstream ( even though in many ways he is very mainstream and academically able plus very good at sport@). I don’t know why but in my mind I’d somehow thought secondary would be even worse!

Hearing some of these adjustments that have been made has made me think maybe I do need to explore mainstream and see if there are any options - as my gut is in many ways he’d do better there. Difficulty is how you find one who will make these kinds of adjustments!

@Ridingladybugs The key is a detailed, specific and quantified EHCP. If the provision is detailed, specified and quantified in section F it must be provided. If it isn’t you can enforce it.

Speaking to the prospective secondary SENCOs prior to the phase transfer review will tell you a lot about how supportive the school is.

Thanks - yes it is detailed ( I ended up getting a lawyer). The thing I find difficult is the school will say they are doing x but then actually aren’t. sure lots experience this o

My DS2 starts MS secondary on Monday. He has autism & ADHD diagnoses & has a full EHCP, had 32.5 hours 1 to 1 in primary. He took SATs & had extra time, a scribe, own room & movement breaks. Passed all but reading comprehension to average level, or just below.

I am pretty nervous about him starting secondary, but also a part of me feels that a bit more independence could be the making of him. He went on an extra induction day, which was helpful & he is very chatty & cheeky & seemed to charm the staff 😍

Adjustments I am aware of:
Lunch pass
Quiet lunch space
Lego club
TA in class, but not just for him
Extra time in exams
Toilet pass

My main concerns for him are getting changed for PE (particularly tie) & getting on with work in class. He is mostly ok once started, but struggles to start by himself.

The lovely SENCO from primary school has offered to come to his first EHCP review at secondary. I don't know if this is standard but could be helpful.

Good luck to all new starters.

In that case keep all communication with the school in writing, remind them the EHCP is a legal document and the provision must be provided. Then if it continues inform the school you will enforce the provision if the situation persists and failure to provide the provision leaves the school open to a Disability Discrimination case. At this point email the LA’s Director of Children’s Services and threaten Judicial Review, too.

This is only possible though if section F is detailed, specified and quantified. If it isn’t and is woolly and vague, with wording such as “access to”, “would benefit from”, “regular”, “opportunities for”… it can’t be enforced and you should focus on tightening the wording up.

Confusedofengland DS3 gets changed separately for PE and staff help if he needs it. If DS’s EHCP states full time 1:1 that should be provided, he shouldn’t be sharing a TA.

They let him walk out if he isn’t coping.

Then they give him detention for walking out.

That’s about it. This is a ‘good’ school for SEND, with an ASD resource base on site.

Support for ASD in mainstream secondary is, IME, fucking shit.

I'm not actually sure if it is written in his EHCP. That's just what he always had. Secondary said right from the start they don't have the budget for individual TAs 😬

@confusedofengland funding isn’t your concern, if it is in the EHCP it must be provided, if the school need more funding they should approach the LA. This is the problem with poorly written EHCPs, the 1:1 should have been specified and quantified in section F. Without it being written in F DS may not receive any TA support and you wouldn’t be able to enforce it.

I will have to check. I feel like I'm failing him before he has even started 😥

You haven’t failed DS. But, section F does need to be water tight, and now you know that you can push for the wording to be amended at the next review if it isn’t already. Unfortunately, with the current system, DC whose parents know the system and can advocate for them get better support. It shouldn’t be that way but it is.

I have checked & it is not specified. Small groups & working with TA is. So I guess we struck lucky at primary school.

Like I say, I do feel DS may well thrive without. He has a tendency to coast unless he has to make the effort & constantly surprises us all with what he can do when challenged.

Starting senior school was so much easier with DS1, who is NT, bright & sporty. I'm never sure if we are doing the right thing by DS2. Socially he should be in special school. Academically he is fine in MS. There are no schools near us for the kind of child he is & no way I could homeschool.

accessing curriculum is not a problem. It’s mainly anxiety and organization with perfectionist tendencies that can lead to avoidance or breakdowns.

Allowed to use calm room if needed. She never has and I think she would be too embarrassed, but it is there.

teachers are supposed to be proactive in asking her to show she is keeping up on long assignments and not just ask if she is keeping on task.

teachers monitor group work situations. They aren’t supposed to put her in a pair where she is wildly ahead of the other student. For large groups they are supposed to monitor the group and make sure she doesn’t end up doing the entire assignment solo.

we used to have provisions about doing work on the computer, but her school is almost fully digital at this point is it isn’t necessary. We also had provisions about work not being marked off for handwriting, but again, almost fully digital. She rarely has to write so her hands don’t get tired when she does.

Sorry, I have rather hijacked the thread. Having a rubbish day today in pretty much every way.

confusedofengland Small groups need to be quantified. If DS2 doesn’t need full time 1:1 but needs 1:1 to begin tasks you could look to have section F amended to include that.

DS2 may thrive at secondary with the right support. But, if DS2 doesn’t cope with the transition you could look at residential schools if there aren’t any suitable schools within travelling distance. Or if that isn’t suitable, you could look at EOTAS. You don’t have to EHE if you don’t want to.

Thanks for all the input it has given me food for thought that I think we are going to have to push for a review for a ECHP even if it will be a merry go round of 2yrs pushing back & forth with a crap LA. It’s really hard when you have a girl whose academically able but the ASD & executive functioning difficulties are masked daily until breakdown. She needs lots of scaffolding at home that no one sees. We hit crisis point last year and felt nobody helped much despite contacting GP, and other ASD services it’s all fallen on me and I’m frankly quietly exhausted from peri-meno & work & the school holiday juggle before we even start next week with a new school routine.

DS has left high school but he:
Left lessons 5 minutes early to avoid busy corridors
Only did lessons that would be beneficial, so didn't do languages, history or geography
Access to the SEN base at any time
No demerits for things beyond his control or because of his SN
1:1 lessons or small groups for important subjects
Scribe and extra time for exams

Not a parent of an ASC child, but a secondary teacher- adjustments I have seen (not all for the same child):

-TA support in some/all lessons.
-Some/all lessons completed with TA support in the SEN area of the school. Work still set by class teachers with the ultimate goal of reintegrating.
-Allowed different uniform due to sensory issues.
-Ear defenders
-Time out pass
-Toilet pass
-Lunch queue skip/TA assistance with getting lunch.
-Able to eat lunch in the SEN area or a quiet space
-Laptop pass
-Allowed to leave lessons 5 minutes early (Sometimes only before lunch, acting as a lunch queue skip in effect)
-Specific seats within a classroom
-Powerpoints/resources printed for them.
-Other techniques to reduce cognitive load in lessons e.g. gap fills, sentence starters etc.
-Small class teaching in a "nurture" group which went at a slower pace (usually this class would not have MFL lessons).

Very occasionally, reduced timetables have been agreed as a short term measure.

In terms of external exams, common access arrangements include:
-Rest breaks
-25% extra time
-Taking exams in a small room
-Reader or reading pen
-Scribe or dictation software
-Laptop

Forgot there wasn't an edit button, but many of the above were agreed without an ECHP (apart from TA support, as this usually needs funding). We have an SEN register of students with diagnosed SEN but who don't meet the threshold, or haven't yet received and ECHP, and we do try to make reasonable adjustments for these students.

I'd also say most teachers will use their common sense when sanctioning, and won't sanction for something that is clearly outside of a child's control.

Mermaidswimming99 Don’t bother going back and forth with the LA, it rarely achieves the desired outcome. Request an EHCNA yourself (IPSEA have a model letter you can use on their website), and appeal if the LA refuse to assess or refuse to issue. The majority of appeals are upheld.