Any experience with The Elms Colwall?

[MooritRomney]

Hello! We are in the process of returning to the UK and will settle in the Hereford area to be near family (our other option would be family in the Lake District) We're considering The Elms for our three children and would love to hear from others on their experiences. The (relatively new) Headmaster and his wife seem lovely, the teachers we've chatted with also seem super but nothing beats hearing from other parents.

Our son is dyslexic and the school are aware. They assured us that they have the appropriate SEN support for him and also that The Elms would give him lots of other opportunities to succeed at school (sports, art, rural studies, etc).

Alternatively, if anyone has great experience with primary/prep schools in the Lakes that do excellent SEN/dyslexia support I'd love to hear about those too.

A friend of ours is at the Elms and very happy there. She's into ponies and the farm as well as music.

@MrPickles73 Yes, the ponies and farm are a huge draw for my children as well. Do you know anything about the culture of the school? Report so bullying, high or low stress academic culture etc?

I know our friend boards at the Elms and is very happy there. She is not SEN so I can't comment on that. I would ask specific questions to the school about how your son would be supported (method, by whom, no of hours per week etc).

I'm very impressed by the prep our children attend (they are not at the Elms). When you do the taster day they give the children some small maths and english tasks to see whether they will need support and to check whether the school has the capabilities. My children tell me the work is really well differentiated for the different children within the same class. For example those who are struggling don't do Latin and those who are struggling even more don't do French. Our experience of other local schools (state and private) is that they don't provide any flexibility.. Also they have different worksheets and sit different exam papers so that everyone feels they are achieving and working at their level. They are also supported (academically and emotionally) by a SENCO and TAs.

@MrPickles73 yes, we spoke to the SEN coordinator and feel very confident on that front. I was just wondering about the experiences of others at the school both generally and with respect to dyslexia support.

Our experience with state schools has been dismal, and it's a shame.