AIBU to want my (and other) child protected from this child?

[ThisMustBeMyDream]

Full disclaimer: this is an SEN secondary - year 8 (children are 12 and 13). The school is for ASD/ADHD children.

My son is in a class of 14 and now has a 1:1 - it's supposed to be all the time, but it isn't happening at lunches and possibly break time. This is the time he really needs the 1:1.

My child has asd and adhd. His main areas of need are social and behavioural.

There is one child in the class that is causing endless problems with mine (and others). Yes I get it is a school for children with additional needs - and lord knows my own child has behavioural needs. However, this child attacks and bullies for fun it seems. My child is reactive. My child is also incredibly small - bmi below 2nd centile. He doesn't stand a chance against this other child who is going through puberty and much bigger and stronger. A few months ago my child was sent home from school after this child grabbed him, spun him around and he hit the wall hurting his arm. It wasn't broken, but he was in pain for 10 days following and struggled with daily living tasks and writing.

I've just learned this child has attacked another in the class. The child he attacked didn't say anything and as a result ended up in hospital under a full non accidental injury forensic examination with their own family under suspicion. He had over 50 bruises all of the same age and finger tip type, all over his body. The school did investigate after the mother of this child essentially demanded they did. The child admitted to causing the bruising.

I have spent the last 18 months worrying endlessly about this child and mine in the same class. I should have said, the class remain together all day, every day. I have asked school to move my child, but they won't as he is in the only set that may sit gcses and as such, it will disadvantage him massively to be moved. They do move children between classes if they have issues with personality, but they have specifically told me they won't move mine. My son is also incredibly upset at thr thought of being moved and in his words "why should I be punished for his behaviour". I do understand how he feels.

I can not stand the thought of this child being with him for another 3.5 years and the risks it brings. He is dangerous. There are lots of other incidents, these two are just the most recent. Obviously school won't tell me what is happening to the other child. But I don't really know what to do. I pushed and pushed for mine to have 1:1 so I guess my first move is to ask why he isn't getting that at lunch times. But even a 1:1 can't stop a determined child from attacking another...

The dangerous times are the unstructured times play times and breaks and lunchtimes. the school knows that. Get the one to one move to the break times and then the TA can have an early or late lunch.

Only since Christmas has he had a 1:1 TA. It should be all day, but from discussions with him, he doesn't know where she is at lunch time. I'm not sure if someone is watching him from a distance or he is unsupervised. I'm going to ask school. The incident was a few weeks before he got a TA.

That's not on OP your child bas a right to be safe in school, and a sen school with such high staffing has no excuse whatsoever to be letting this happen.

Not sure why those posts were deleted? Didn't break any guidelines that I saw!

Im woundering why the other child's whos hurting children does have a full time 121.

Have you thought about reporting to ofsted?
Maybe safe guarding.

I wonder why too... although given how hard I've fought for my own child to have 1:1 since he was in nursery - I can see why he doesn't.
No, I hadn't considered OFSTED. I assumed it had to go through internal processes first.

The first question Ofsted would ask (if they did anything at all) is whether you have gone through the internal processes.

It’s rare for me to say this (ex teacher) as I think a lot of school complaints should have been sorted out at a lower level before jumping to official complaints, but I would go through your complaints procedure by the letter and not stop until you’ve got some real protection for your child. It will almost certainly start with a discussion with the class teacher to ask for 1:1 cover (or similar) at lunch time, followed by seeing a more senior member of staff if you don’t get satisfaction, but I wouldn’t let it go. I also think that the class teacher is likely to be thankful that you’re making a fuss as they may well be making the same noises but being told ‘that’s what life is like in SEN schools’.

My amazing DIL is a teacher in a secondary SEN school and puts herself between pupils on a daily basis to protect other students and gets hit, punched, kicked and worse. She is highly trained in appropriate restraint but still gets physically assaulted regularly. She’s been strangled several times and very little seems to be done about it from a management point of view. And she is an absolutely excellent teacher with a gift and heart for SEN education. She would fully support a parent expressing concerns for their child in your situation.

I think you have good reason to press your case. If your child can’t be moved because it will impair his future prospects, which I understand, then something else will have to be done to protect him and others. It’s no good him being able to take GCSEs if you can’t get him through the gate because he’s afraid of being hurt each day! Hopefully the other family are making a fuss too, which would also help your case.

Good luck!

It does. Ofsted will contact the LA who will ask if you have gone through the complaints procedure. Ofsted are swamped in parental complaints that don’t follow the policy.

This is very distressing, school complaints policy all the way through, then contact your local safeguarding board and then ofsted.
You could ask for a risk assessment to be completed to understand how they plan to keep your child safe.

What are school doing to keep everyone safe ?
My son also goes to a SEN school his school is for children with severe and profound learning disabilities, so many children including my son have extremely challenging behaviour but the staff are very good at keeping everyone safe and recognising triggers

Excuse my ignorance but if your son has a TA then her role is teaching assistant - available to assist the teacher in teaching your son. She isn't his personal security guard. If his behaviour is sufficiently safe surely he doesn't need her hanging around during rest times like lunch?

Not wanting your child and his classmates put at risk from a violent and unpredictable student is definitely not unreasonable though. I have no idea what is a realistic expectation - especially as the school is unlikely to tell you what they have tried/are trying/will try to do - but I don't think you'd be unreasonable to persistently raise your son's difficulties with him to the school.

Could you raise concerns directly to LA under safeguarding issues?

If the other child has ASD or adhd very unlikely he is being violent for the fun of it.

special schools do tend to have more violence than mainstream as it is where students whose needs are far too much for mainstream go. It’s one of the things that put me off teaching in them.

1:1 ta at lunchtimes and break times will help but it is not always possible to prevent violence. School should be working on the triggers for the other child but they will not necessarily share that with you.

Thats not the Ops concern though is it?
The school has a duty to safeguard all pupils
They cant just say well hes autistic he can't help it and it's a special school so theres bound to be more violence ,
They need to look at strategies to prevent that.