Homeschooling 16-18 advice

[Aproductofmyera80s]

DS 16 has autism, he’s never really been academic, the high school failed him massively in year 11 (a whole other story) but he didn’t want to move schools, he’s hates change etc.
he got accepted to college, but because he’s failed his English and math GCSEs has to take them alongside his chosen course, fine he accepted it, we know he’s good at English as his teacher said based on teacher assessment alone he would have a 5/6, it’s the exam part he struggles with. So apart from the obvious nerves, he been managing alright, first day was yesterday, absolutely fine, today, he travelled all the way to college (8 miles) for what should have been 90 mins, they let him out after 30 minutes.. DS isn’t good with routine changes and to top it off he still doesn’t have his timetable. He was supposed to meet me outside of my work at 1, so was walking in the rain for best part of an hour as to waste time. He seemed okay, until this evening he’s completely fell apart about the fact he has to redo maths and English, and what if his maths teacher isn’t nice (he’s not had the best maths teachers in high school), he told me he’s overwhelmed and he’s completely shut off. I’m here with my first anxiety attack in 10 weeks since he finished his exams.
im unsure if college is gonna workout for him, but he really wanted to do this course, im thinking about my options if he refuses to go. Is it possible to home educate until he turns 18?
l have reassured him it’s gonna take a minute to get into a rhythm and his body has to adjust to the new routine. I’m hoping he wakes in a better mood, problem is I’m not here every mornings as I work. So my mum helps him get sorted which is how it’s been since he started reception.
im really not sure what to do…
i will also note That we tried to apply for transport, appealed twice, but the local authority thinks it’s acceptable for him to come with me (his college is 10 minutes from my work) at 7am on the bus and then to hang around town until the college opens at 9.30 or even suggested he waits at work with me, I work for a company where this isn’t allowed.

any advice would be appreciated.

You can home educate at any age. My youngest is 18 and is nowhere near finished with her education, so she's carrying on indefinitely.

The unfortunate thing is that you can't get Child Benefit for a young person who is home educated unless they were home ed while a child. Other than that, it really makes no difference how old they are.

If your son is keen to get English and maths GCSE, those can be done as a private candidate. You'd find an exam centre which will take him as a private candidate, and then figure out how he will prepare himself for the exam. That might be on his own, or with you, or a tutor, or an online school. There are different options for exactly which exam to sit (GCSE or IGCSE, of which there are various exam boards offering their own version), all of which are completely equivalent, so you may be able to identify one which suits him slightly better than the others. But do make sure to identify an exam centre which offers that exact exam, because not all exam centres offer all of them.

Oh, and another alternative to GCSEs for those two subjects is Functional Skills. Have a look at some sample papers and see if he thinks they would be a better fit than GCSE. A pass at Functional Skills Level 2 is equivalent to GCSE Grade 4. The pass/fail nature might create less pressure, and also there are sittings throughout the year so he could tackle it whenever he's ready.

The problem is he doesn’t want to resit maths especially, he really really really struggles with it. So his hatred for maths is what’s really the problem. I really wish for kids with SEN there was way to drop out of school early. He hates the fact I managed to drop out when I was 16, but I got a job straight away and have been working since. He won’t be able to work unless it’s working from home or at least interaction with people. He struggles with meeting new people, he’s got a few disabilities he struggles with to…

My dd barely attended school from 14 (also asd) and got decent grades teaching herself from textbooks and the internet with a few resources provided by school (had echp) even if she did go she stayed at the senco suite. If your dc is a self starter he could teach himself but this isn't for everyone.

OP does his college really not open until 9.30 or is that the time he needs to be in his first lesson. My DS with.learning disabilities has to arrive at 8am but lessons don't start until 9am. Ds goes to the college cafeteria and has a cooked breakfast or a bacon roll.

I was coming on to say basically the same as Saracen, that you can home ed at any age, but does your son have an EHCP? I think in some cases you can claim child benefit if you start home educating after 16, if your child has SN. If your son doesn't have an EHCP, I would consider applying for one just in case (it can give access to special colleges, if needed, and special considerations in FE). Although, understandable if you ultimately decide it is not worth the effort and intrusion.
You could home educate, putting him in for functional English, whilst working on other skills or work experience, then he could go to college at 19 and he wouldn't need to study maths (if he had an EHCP he would get funding until age 25 if needed).

My DS found Functional Skills Maths harder than GCSE because it's very wordy questions and he struggles with his reading. He found college very hard at first because he kept getting lost and won't speak to people he doesn't know so couldn't ask for help so he'd ring me upset he didn't know or remember where he should be. It took about 6 weeks but then he started to settle. Now he likes it more than his previous special school. His college give him a 1-1 support assistant for every lesson he is in college. His tutors explain everything to him patiently and he is really flourishing now. If your DS can persevere I think it will get better for him.

He has an echp plan, and I can promise now he would not go to college at 19, he wants his education over and done with, and tbh so do I, when he’s overwhlmed he takes it out on whoever’s nearby which is usually dd, I try to keep her away from him as much as possible. He’s absolutely fine apart from a wobble here of there but you can see the difference to when he’s at school and when he’s not.

I’ve tried explaining this to him, he does have a 1-1 ( he likes her) but she’s not with him all the time, the problem is getting him there, he’s comfortable on his way around the college, we’ve visited beforehand many times, I physically can not force him, he’s 6ft and a big lad. I’m hoping once he gets into a groove he will be fine, I’m just a bit anxious because he’s not been like this in about 12 weeks… and I can’t help but notice the timing.

Okay, unless he's at college between the ages of 16-18 he doesn't HAVE to do maths at all. So he could do other subjects through home education.

For that matter, he doesn't have to continue in education if he doesn't want to. Young people have a legal duty to remain in education or training until their 18th birthday, but that's theoretical. There are no penalties for noncompliance. He could instead get a job or do voluntary work if that feels like the right path for him.

It's difficult to know with children with autism whether it's better that they know that education is optional or not. One one hand it reduces the pressure, on the other hand it can lead to feelings of uncertainty.
If your son is eager to move on, you could look at supported internships, my feelings are that for a lot of autistic youngsters, this would be better at an older age than average, rather than 16-18.
However, if you just want to get your son through this course, especially if it is a one year course (I did this with my eldest) then I would try to keep encouraging him. Maybe have the odd strategic day off and try not to get too worried about attendance data. Mine scraped through by the skin of her teeth, mostly due to a very flexible and understanding tutor.

@worcesterpear "You could home educate, putting him in for functional English, whilst working on other skills or work experience, then he could go to college at 19 and he wouldn't need to study maths (if he had an EHCP he would get funding until age 25 if needed)."

Sadly, young people in college with an EHCP actually DO have to keep working toward GCSE in English and maths right up to 25!!! I think it's outrageous. By all means it should be OFFERED to them, but requiring it of them when no one else has to do it is downright discriminatory IMO. I had intended to get an EHCP for my daughter when she was 15/16 just in case she ever wanted to go to college, but changed my mind when I learned this.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/16-to-19-funding-maths-and-english-condition-of-funding#summary

That's bad @Saracen my dd briefly went back a few years ago for level 3 as she had English, and they didn't make her do maths. I didn't realise it had changed - it's restricting opportunities for many.

Actually, thinking about it I'm not sure if she did officially have an EHCP then. (She had a statement, which was briefly converted, then dropped). It should be more publicised that this is a possible downside of gaining an EHCP in further education.

They don't have to study GCSE the article clearly states other stepping stones qualifications in English and Maths are ok so Entry Levels and Functional Skills level 1 or 2 would be ok. My DS did a BTEC Level 2 in Sport and Functional Skills English level 1. He passed now he's doing BTEC Level 3 Sport and GCSE English. You have to study English and Maths unless you have GCSE at Level 4 or Functional Skills Level 2 but that is a good thing if they study at an appropriate level (stepping stones) because these are skills they will need in the future. It's not outrageous at all.

My daughter is not going to achieve GCSE grade 4 or Functional Skills Level 2. Therefore if she had an EHCP she would be forced to keep plodding away at the English and maths the entire time she was at college, whether her main course was carpentry or fashion design. I am all in favour of having English and maths on offer, but there comes a point when a person should have the right to decide for herself whether to take them up. She's an adult. It should be her choice. Piling extra classes on her would make it even more difficult for her to keep up in her main course, where she may need to work extra hard due to her learning disability.

Besides, even if she does want to do more English and maths, who's to say that the college is the best place for her to do that? It would likely be more efficient for her to learn one-to-one (with me, for example, as she now does) than to sit in a class which isn't targeted to her ability.

I teach online - most of my students have autism, many have other learning and health issues. Most have an EHCP, so their fees are paid. I have students 18+ who have come to us needing to take GCSEs.

Online is not for everyone, but it's worth considering. We also offer Functional Skills instead of GCSE for some students.

@Saracen the whole point is a Maths and English class would be targeted at her ability. There are Entry Levels lower than Functional Skills. She wouldn't be expected to do GCSE if she was working at a much lower level. The college my DS with learning disabilities goes to.gives him a 1-1 support for all the time he is there.

I know. I know they would find her a course and not make her attempt GCSE. But I don't agree she should have to keep taking English and maths indefinitely when she doesn't want to. It's her life and her education. It should be her choice.

My son is 17. We home educated since he was 7. Then he got to 16 and tried college since September. His mental health is not OK, going to college has really changed him. He wants to continue studying at home for his gcses. He doesn't want to change courses. He wants to find a part time job and study at home.

Can I take him out of college now and continue his gcses at home with a proper programme and STILL CLAIM CHILD BENEFIT and UC?

I really want him to be able to do what he wants amd he was always a good self directed learner when he was home educated.

Please tell me there's a way to do this!

Thank you.