How do I find out why I went to SEN school.

[Youagain2025]

When i was a child 8 or maybe nine. I'm quite sure it was year 3? I jointed a school for children with moderate learning difficulties. I was not told why and I never questioned it. I feel like there's a big chunk that i don't know about myself. I'm not sure if things were done differently on the mid 80s like what would have been done to decide i needed to ho to a special needs school. I guess there were not ehcps back then ? I have read GP would have had records. Why would a GP have records about my schooling ? I read that i can ask for a SARS? But it said something about knowing the dates and what it is im looking for . I'm not even 100% on the dates. And I'm not sure how to word what I'm looking for.

Write to your drs, email or good old fashioned letter - say that you are confused and it’s affecting you as you don’t understand your own situation, could they check through notes and arrange someone to explain your diagnosis and potentially seek more up to date diagnosis if appropriate. It may be a practice nurse or a social worker attached to the practice rather than a gp as they often are better at this sort of thing. Stress it isn’t urgent but it’s something causing worry and stress

I did look at my records on line it tells me recent things. Like recent consultations via phone.

The past things till the mid 90s it just says things like i had antibiotics contraceptive injects etc. Nothing much really

I'm confused, you think you have learning difficulties/disabilities and you went to a school for children with learning difficulties/disabilities.
Moderate learning disability is a diagnosis in itself - I'm not sure that you'd find out much more. A lot of specifics, such as ADHD, processing issues etc weren't diagnosed then.

I have severe dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia - I remember it being suggested by the headteacher that my parents place me in a 'special school for the slow' (don't come for me, that was the term they used), this was the very early 80's.

I was a perfectly functioning child outside of these issues and bright in all other areas of learning. I was quiet, well-behaved and happy to learn and to be at school - but they really really put pressure on my parents, hinting that I was a burden to the teachers, and I belonged in a place that 'would cater to my needs'.

The head had made a preemptive referral by telephone call to the special school in anticipation that my parents would say yes. There was no GP, no social services - just the head's opinion, which, in chatting to other people from that era, was how things worked in the early 80's

We happened to be moved for my Dad's job just after, and I ended up in a new new school (outside the UK) which didn't care and took me in their stride, and no more was ever said about it.

I only mention this just in case there is no paper trail with GP or school, if you go down the route of making a SAR, as there wouldn't have been in my case. The only reason I know about it is my own recollection and a conversation with my Aunt.

Was it Woodside School for Autism and Moderate Learning Needs
https://www.bexleylocaloffer.uk/Page/30922

Since you do have learning difficulties, isn't that the obvious explanation why you went to a SEN school? It's unlikely there would be any significant extra closure or ephiphanys to get. It's also obvious that back in the 80s-90s, the threshold for learning difficulties was much lower and encompassed things like dyslexia or dyscalculia. Social issues like autism, selective mutism, shyness would probably have also played a role.

Our school had a SEN class in the early 90s and I vaguely recall some classmates going there for extra support. They all turned out to be perfectly normal adults. The one I stayed in touch with over the years has mild dyslexia and hoped for an ADHD diagnosis but didn't quite meet the criteria.

I went to special school in the 90s, OP, and yes it was never really explained properly to me either. I never got a statement. I was likely what they now call autistic, but in those days with a high IQ and being female, I didn't really meet the criteria. They didn't really know what to do with me, because I wasn't naughty but I was just a super weird problem. An outside context problem! 😂So they put me in the raggy dolls bin with all the other miscellaneous problem children.

I never got any kind of diagnosis and no follow up, just sent to a series of different prefabs from around 12 until I turned 16, on which day they said oh you don't have to come in any more, bye. So I have no qualifications.

I found out about the autism thing through requesting my notes for another reason; it was written in there that I didn't meet the criteria re IQ and sex, and had declined further assessment. I can't remember doing this tbh, but I can see how I might conclude that was a waste of time. It's not implausible as I have no interest in pursuing it now either.

I think in those days, an awful lot was lumped into a generic "learning difficulties" and it's entirely possible that you were not diagnosed with anything, or if you were, that it does not necessarily reflect how you (or a child like you) would be diagnosed now.

In terms of your question about finding it difficult to go to the GP to get an assessment now because you're not "ill", turn it around and think about going to the GP to get help for things you find difficult. So think about what you find hard - is it understanding difficult issues, communication, understanding social cues, memory, learning new things, completing multiple tasks, starting tasks, finishing tasks, doing certain physical tasks (writing/cooking/driving etc) and then approach your GP about seeking assessment and support. Key is to highlight how these issues impact you - makes it hard to find/keep jobs, means you're isolated asyou don't have friends, you're struggling with physical health or weight etc.

good luck.

Did you manage to find anything out on the end ?

I think the easiest path for you OP would be to e-mail each of the Local Authorities concerned and say that you are trying to trace your school records and give the name of the school and the approximate years you attended. See what they come back with.

What? No they aren’t! Why on earth would they be destroyed?

You can ask them to give you a copy of your patient records. You re entitled to see them.

I didn't know moderate learning difficulties was a diagnosis. But I dont really know what moderate learning difficulties actually means .

Huh? How and why would this happen?

Would the GP refer you to a special school or was it the teacher at your previous school?

I have no idea how it worked back then. The school maybe able to give you an idea.

I contacted my high school for information. They did not have records but did put me in contact with a teacher who was there at the time who was able to answer some of my questions. This was about 25 years after I’d left.

Some schools still have records going back to Victorian times. It's worth trying.

It means you have moderate learning difficulties. You said earlier you have dyslexia and dyscalculia. These are learning disorders.

I think it’s best you have a sit down with your GP and explain that you are confused. Ask if there are any adult services you can be referred to.

I think you're confusing learning difficulties which you already know you have as yiu have difficulties with literacy and numeracy.

And learning disabilities which is a psychiatric diagnosis. Moderate learning disabilities is a diagnosis given to people with an IQ in the range 35-49.

My brother has moderate learning disabilities, an IQ of 48. He's 30, he can't read, write or count (but he thinks he can), he still believes in Santa, the tooth fairy and the easter bunny. he doesn't understand money, lives in supported housing and couldn;t go anywhere on his own.

This doesn;t sound like you OP.

I'm not sure you'd find answers looking at the schools.

These days SEN provisions are usually split by need, such as: physical and medical, social emotional and interaction, behavioural etc. May vary by region, but I don't know if they were categorised as such back then.

You could call the schools and find out what primary need they cater for and that might give you a clue as to why it was decided they thought it was the best fit for you but because the education model has changed so much it might be of no use.

You'd be better doing as PP said and seek a more up to date diagnosis so you can learn about yourself from now rather than then.

Best of luck OP. I know closure is important.

To be fair, I suspect becuase it can mean an awful lot of things.

So it might be that if you did ever manage to get hold of your school reports, yu might be able to get info on what difficulties the school saw. I imagine though that you know what those are. Are they related to numbers? To understanding abstract concepts? To memory?

That's not what she's looking for. I think she wants to understand why she was put into a special school. Mainstream schools work with children who have dyslexia and dyscalculia. What was the criteria back then to go to those schools. I can understand why op is interested to understand her past and how things worked in schools back then.

Hey OP. I had a lot of unanswered questions about my childhood that my parents couldn't tell me, so I asked for my medical notes from my GP from birth to now and got them. I'm mid 30s and everything was still there.

I also contacted social services for my own records and they sent me a bunch of thing I never knew about - this might be worth a shot, even if you don't think they were ever involved.

If the school is still standing you could contact them to ask if they have any information on past pupils, I think the worst case scenario is that they say no.

I hope you manage to find some answers.

Standard education was a lot less inclusive in the 80s. And there weren't things like TAs for pupils who needed extra support.

I went to a private school that was not a 'special' school but it had much more flexible admission criteria than state schools at the time, and did offer extra support if needed. So quite a few parents sent children who they thought could cope with and would benefit from 'normal' education, but who the local authority would only offer a place in a special school (which often had very low expectations and educational standards).

About 1 in 3 of the pupils in my class had dyslexia or similar. When I later went to an ordinary state school it was about 1 in 15. The private school also had pupils with things like autism, cerebal palsy, or profound hearing loss. All perfectly able to manage a standard academic curriculum, but the local authority wouldn’t take them.

So if you have autism and dyslexia, that's probably the reason.

It's likely individual records won't have been kept, but you could ask your GP, the schools, and the local education authorities if they have information on you specifically, or on the admission criteria for those schools at the time.

GP’s hold your records from birth until you die. They may have some info in there regarding any clinics you went to or doctors/ consultants/ psychologists you were seen by as hospitals and clinics also write back to your GP and everything is then kept on record. You will need to contact your GP and request copies of your medical records