This. Where I teach, it is almost impossible to get a child into any sort of alternative provision, even if their needs are very high. Schools cannot just put children into specialist settings on a whim.
Inclusion is a lovely idea, but mainstream not always the best setting. Especially now we have such a lack of support staff. I teach upper primary and currently have a girl in her final year. Her behaviour is perfect; she is a lovely child who always works hard, tries her very best and really cares about others.
She cannot read, write, or communicate clearly. She has difficulty coordinating her movements and so physical activities are also a challenge for her. Her interests and understanding is very different to that of her peers. They have an obvious affection for her and are kind to her, but they do not play with her or engage with her unless paired up together.
She really needs 1:1 support all day, but we can’t offer that. She gets 4 hours a week. Her options for much of the school day are to sit at a table of peers, but work on her own tasks (so she is present, but not really ‘included’), or ‘join in’ with learning far beyond her capabilities. She has to have very different learning activities to the rest of the class. She is aware of this and her confidence and mental health is being damaged.
We have fought hard to get any kind of alternative education for her. All we have been offered is one morning a week in a special education setting. She LOVES it. She has made a genuine friend who has similar interests. They learn practical life skills and she gets to engage with peers working on the same academic tasks as her.