6 form admission appeal. Oh, please help

[HisMum4]

Autistic DS with statement scored a C in English and didn't meet the minimal entry requirement of a B. He also missed the required grade in Physics unexpectedly receiving Bs instead of predicted A* in all sciences.
In Jan DS scored a B in English in mock exams. His 8 best GCSEs are AAAABBBC. A are maths and MFL.

This is so terrible and catastrophic for DS as he is so dependent on the statement provisions in this school and the friendship group that is hugely important as heist supportive networks. His needs couldn't be met in other schools and some other local schools told me that post 16 supporting statemented students in not their priority. If he were to change school, he would probably under perform hugely at AS level because of the upset and disruption or get anxiety or other mental health issues.

But the school's case is that in their experience students with a B in English don't make it through AS and drop out after year 12. I don't know how predictive English grade C really is of future success in Maths and Physics and whether experience with normal DC in that school is applicable to DS, whose spiky, uneven profile of abilities and competences is well documented. But another school argument is that he lacks breadth - could do maths and further maths but actually needs 4 good subjects at AS to progress with 3 to A levels and physics is not that subject as he only got a B... But a few months ago they praised him and predicted an A*. They would argue MFL is also not such a subject because of essays.

I know DS is good at sciences and certainly could do Physics and double maths to A levels and French to AS, but how to convince the panel? All SN arguments seem to reinforce school position that DS just not good enough, but that is so not true.

The school say in their past experience all 6 students admitted with a C dropped out at AS. Is that common?

What are the mechanism/ assumption behind this prediction that those with C in English wouldn't make it through A levels?

What about breadth, how to prove that he could do Physics with a B?

Since the exams have changed so radically this year they can't base their judgements on what pupils in previous years have done.

Dayshift, or anyone who could know,

Could you pinpoint which report exactly from Ambitious about autism provides data / analysis that children with ASD do NOT follow predicable attainment patterns and as such mainstream criteria can be discriminatory. I spent a good hours looking but couldn't identify, maybe I am too tired.
I woulds be ever so grateful.

Admission. Can i pick your brains? Do you think this is a back door way of getting rid of an SEN student?. The student is choosing this school. I would like to know what the Parent Partnership has advised in the light of the new legislation. I think this is more pertinent than statistical evidence. Did the school reject this student just before the new legislation came into force on purpose? It effectively means the statement means nothing. Should it have been renegotiated during the last year? Not sure if anyone knows the answers but I am very curious because one could imagine this happening to quite a few pupils.

Milly

I am suspicious of exactly that and the schools academy status

Thats why I think IPSEA / SEN team / parent partnership need an in on this one... It's complex without a new code of practice

HisMum - I know I sent you a link but I am not sure it is that - I wonder if it was a campaign to launch their college charter... I definitely didn't imagine it as I asked the friend who showed it me and she remembers it but damned if I can find it.

I would hope that this is not the case. If it is a backdoor way of getting rid of an SEN student who they have concerns will not get the highest grades at A level then the school is playing a dangerous game. Pupil had a statement for autism and the school cannot just suggest it no longer applies. Under the equality act my belief is that pupil with autism will be classed as disabled (autism does not suddenly go away). If the school have not given due consideration to appropriate adjustments or treated this pupil differently from other pupils they could be prosecuted. If found guilty that would be expensive both financially and in terms of bad publicity.