MLD secondary provisions - private and state

[JUNI2005]

Son with MLD is in year 5 and am looking for specialist and/or mainstream private or state secondary school in London. Easier said than done. Anyone with some advice? We are based in East London but we are happy to move if we can find the right place. Many thanks

If you mean Mild learning disability - then all state schools should be able to cope (except Grammars probably). So you will need to be far more specific to get good advice.

Thank you - by MLD I mean moderate learning disability. I am addressing my query to parents of children with MLD - I think they will know of the challenges of finding a good school for children with MLD. There are more schools catering for children with dyslexia and autism, but it is a lot trickier for kids with MLD. But I hope I will be proven wrong. I hope that helps.

Are you always so rude?

Maybe post in the SN section?

But without more specific information on the kind of disability and the kind of provision needed I doubt you will get really good recommendations.

Thank you for your comments. I do not consider my postings to have been rude in any shape or form. I have posted my query in the SN section as well. Many thanks again.

1st important question, does he have a statement or EHCP? Without one of these he wont get admission to a state special school or unit. There is advise on the IPSEA website about how to apply for one. All areas will have special schools that cater for moderate learning disabilities. Mainstream state schools may also work for your son but again he will probably need a statement or EHCP to access the help he needs and the funding behind it.
There is a school called Riverston in Eltham I think which is private and inclusive so has children with learning disabilities not just dyslexia so that might be worth a look.

Many thanks for your advice. My son has a statement of special educational needs - he has had one since year 1 of primary school, and will soon move over to the EHCP (by February next year). I have never heard of the school you mention, so many thanks for the tip.

You should, this term, have a meeting with his current school, the LA's representative, Educational Psychologist and anyone else involved to see which secondary school can meet his needs. The statement, will be rewritten to reflect his needs at Secondary School and a school will be named in the statement and he will get priority entry. It is unlikely to be a private school paid for by the LA for MLD though. When I worked in this field, we had more places (in specialist units) for Secondary MLD than anything else. In those days nothing for autism at all! However, you should find that many mainstream schools have a very good understanding of how to meet the needs MLD children because they will have experience of this. I would not have thought finding a school will be a particular problem unless you do not like any of the schools orhave very specific requirements. I would ask your current school (SEND Co-ordinator) about possible secondary schools immediately, and get the ball rolling so there is plenty of time to get the statement changed.

By the way, an MLD child would never get into a grammar school. MLD usually means the child's IQ is fairly low/low and they struggle with all aspects of the academic curriculum.

Thank you all for your further comments. My son is in a mainstream primary school but we are not very happy with it, especially because the gap between my son and his school peers is widening and he feels isolated. Hence our dilemma between a specialist school and a mainstream school. At a recent consultation with a paediatrician we were advised to try and find a mainstream school with a separate unit for special needs that is big enough to facilitate a same ability group which would ensure that children with learning disabilities are not isolated at school.

2 children from our SW5 primary have recently moved on to The Cambridge School in W12 - recent feedback is good.

For an Independent that caters for a wide range of abilities Farringtons in Chislehurst (London Borough of Bromley) is very nurturing and has experience of working with children who need extra support. Most children will be fairly mainstream but perhaps didn't get into the selective independents. They are co-ed from 3.5 to 18. They are a day and boarding school with beautiful grounds. I am not a parent with a child who has MLD but my daughter had friends at the school who did so I knew the parents and they were very happy with the school. We moved DD at year 3 only because academically she had outgrown the school, otherwise we'd have been happy for her to stay.

What schools are the School/LA flagging up to you? I agree units are much better but I am surprised they are so difficult to find in your area, especially as it is London. You should not be having to do this on your own without support from the school.

Thanks for these further comments. No, I do think consider it would suit a pupil with MLD, nor would a grammar school, as another poster rightly said. Children with MLD such as my son have significant delays across all areas of development, including speech and language, non-verbal reasoning, working memory and processing speed. My son is in year 5 but his NC levels are 2C in reading; 1A in writing, maths 2B and science 2C. He is 2 to 4 years behind his peer group.

My son has Mld and goes to a fab sports academy in Grantham
Called G.A.N.F it is actually 2 special needs school that work together and are both excellent at getting the most from your child , hope this helps you

Thanks. My last post should have read that I didn't think it would suit my son - I omitted to write "not". Thanks again for all your comments.