How common is it for children to repeat reception?

[givemedirections]

As it says on the title really. Child in question has severe autism and apparently they can’t meet his needs in Year 1 - but he can’t stay in reception forever? So what eventually happens?

I wouldn't bother honestly it's not worth wasting your time explaining it again.

What do you have in writing? If things have been said verbally then follow this up with an email to confirm the details of what is discussed.
Then you don't "wait for a place in a special school" you go and visit to find out which one would meet the needs best.
I would suggest contacting/joining NAS and talk to their helplines and connect with the local group to find local info. Transport should be provided to a suitable provision.

Organisations such as SENSOS! Can be helpful.

Repeating reception is unusual - and can be like trying to teach a deaf child by shouting at them.

@OhMaria2

I wholeheartedly agree. Parents who say their children are 'happy' in mainstream but have no realisation of what rubbish provision we have for their child.

Sitting in corridors as there is nowhere else.
Using equipment begged or borrowed from staff in school from their own houses as there's no money to buy resources.
Hugely inexperienced staff as no one wants to do the job.

These children would thrive in specialise provision.

You are thinking about one child. The school is thinking about maybe a few hundred but the LA is thinking about thousands and, at LA level, its focus is on funding and future place planning.

By keeping him on roll with the Year 1 cohort, the school is telling the LA that they (LA) will need to have a space for him at secondary school (whether at mainstream or special) in the academic year when that cohort transfers, not the following year.

For one child, this may not seem to be particularly relevant, but multiply it up by the numbers of children potentially involved, who could be dropping back at different stages in their school careers, and it can cause huge issues with there not being enough places in the right schools.

There can also be difficulties when these then young adults reach school-leaving age and can choose to leave without completing their secondary education or, if other agencies are involved (likely if there additional needs prompting the cohort change), they potentially fall into a gap between child and adult services as they are too old for children’s services but adult services don’t work with schools.

Nobody is lying. He is on roll in his true chronological year group. The issue is about how to best meet his needs, and the school clearly feels this that next year this by him continuing to access the Reception curriculum. This is not going to be a permanent solution (he can’t stay in the Reception class forever) so his parents should be working with the school and the LA through the EHCP review process to plan what future provision should look like for him.

It's not the OP's child.

Hi, a simple explanations for telling the LEA and officially having him enrolled as year 1 could be either funding or that they would then have to turn down a new reception starter if the school has no more official places and it is oversubscribed, which again would impact their funding as they receive funding per pupil so the more pupils, more funding which is in all children's interest. Just an idea.

I’m and teacher at a specialist school, we get a lot of students coming to us from mainstream and often we will get a child who is in Year 1 or Year 2 but has been taught in reception. Oldest child I’ve known who came to us from being in a mainstream reception class was in Y4.

I don’t think the school are telling the LA that your nephew is in Y1 to lie, it’s because if they say he is in YrR he will remain a year below his peers for the rest of his school life, so will end up going to secondary a year late and leave school a year late. By saying he’s in Yr1 your nephew will remain with his current year group when it is time to transition. It doesn’t really matter to the LA which classroom he is being taught in, what matters is whether he is a YrR child or a Yr1 child in terms of when he will transition to KS2 and to secondary.

It is possible for a child to be held back a year, so it is possible for your nephew to stay in reception and be classed as a YrR child if that is what his parents want (and if the LA will agree) but it means he will then stay a year behind and so will go to secondary at age 12 instead of 11. If that’s what is wanted then the school do need to make it clear to the LA he is not going into Yr1 but is going into YrR as a Year R child, but if his parents want him to continue to be considered as Yr 1 then that is what the LA need to know regardless of which classroom or peer group he is being taught with.

An even simpler explanation is that they have informed the LA that he is in year 1 because he is!

I know 🤣. I keep coming back but don't know why. There's no way the LA don't know. Which school what's to put and keep a child down a year group 🙄.

They aren't asking for it in their returns. Because their data gathering exercises are based upon NC Year, not YTI.

When his EHCP is reviewed (and can be done early on the basis of breakdown/failure if necessary), the fact that they tried to meet his needs by teaching him OOY can be used as further evidence that specialist provision is necessary - and if they know the LA tends to say 'No. Just keep them in Reception for another year' to kick the can down the road for another twelve months, they will be able to prevent that additional year's delay by being able to say 'We've already tried that and still can't meet his needs now or on an ongoing basis'.

By the way, @MolkosTeenageAngst , they aren't restricted to the years they are already in. It's also common for those educated OOY in primary to transition into the chronological age group at KS3 (it's about 75:25 for rejoining their cohort to remaining OOY, although the ratio is likely to change as the recent increased numbers of deferred summerborns get older). Any decision to admit OOY that isn't written into an EHCP is made on an individual basis by the Admissions Authority with regard to - but not always following - the opinion of the Headteacher.

(Source: Experience as a Governance Professional, Admissions and Data Management for more years than I'd like to admit).

I think the school will be pushing for a special school via review of ECHP. I worked for a LA and we were very aware that some DC being kept down were actually putting others at risk. Rough play and being unable to settle makes other dc wary and parents end up being unhappy so the school has even more to contend with. Some dc do need specialist provision and parents should be wanting this too.

In DDs reception class last year, there were two non-verbal twin brothers. They didn’t move into Y1 with their peers, instead remaining in reception. By the end of this school year, both boys have moved to a specialist school which can better meet their needs.