Secondary in West /NW London for severely visually impaired child

[doingwhatican]

We’re need to choose a secondary school for our DC who has a severe visual impairment. DC loves music and drama and is academically strong. The chats we have had with senco’s have mostly been disheartening.
Does anyone have a child with a SVI in a school that is doing well in supporting him /her? Or any to avoid? Thank you!

@doingwhatican, sorry, I live in the frozen north rather than London, but I DO have a Y9 child who is registered blind/SSI. In the interest of solidarity, I thought I’d bump your thread for you in the hope that someone with more specific experience comes along soon.

I would, in the meantime, suggest that you speak to your child’s QTVI to get a feel for which schools are best at supporting children and young people with visual impairments. I would also recommend the VICTA parent portal or Facebook page (closed community).

My DD is at a super-selective grammar school and also has a flair for art. Her school is generally willing to learn how to accommodate my DD’s needs but I have learned that I have to do the vast majority of thinking ahead and planning for them.

Things I would think about:

Can your child leave lessons early to avoid the corridor crushes
Can they jump the lunch queue to avoid being overwhelmed in the lunch hall
Will school fund a specialist laptop or Braille reader so they can access the curriculum - alternatively, there may be funding for such devices from the likes of the RNIB or VICTA
Will the PE department differentiate PE lessons for your child - the PE teachers at my DD’s school FINALLY began to listen to me when I suggested that half the teaching staff blindfold themselves while the other half threw dodge balls/cricket balls/hockey balls/footballs at them at great velocity! 😅

Oh wow SmaugMum I love your PE trick! These are excellent points.
London is funny - QTVIs won’t really give away much about where is good for SVI /VI students. It’s bizarre, as if they’re not allowed to say?! We have one school in mind which is excellent - so fingers crossed it won’t be too much of a battle (it’s currently out of borough). Hoping we don’t have to do all the work for the SENCO. Thanks again!

@doingwhatican, unfortunately, I reckon that you will have to do the vast majority of thinking for your child’s SENCO/s. I guess it comes with the territory?

Just thinking back to Y7:

I ended up writing my DD’s one-page profile for school, highlighting where she should sit in class to maximise on her residual vision and avoid glare on the whiteboard etc.
I secured an agreement that teachers would email my DD’s lessons a day ahead of time so she could prepare properly.
After a few headaches with the lunch system, and working out that my DD could not read any of the menus or signage, I spoke directly to the cafeteria manager who took DD under her wing and, for a time, emailed the daily menus to us to help minimise stress and anxiety.
I spoke directly to her school bus company and reserved a disabled seat for her; they sent videos of the driver/s and the layout of the bus to help DD.
I bought (from Amazon) football/hockey boots with Velcro straps rather than laces in order to simplify changing for PE.
I bought job lots of PE socks and school ties as DD struggles with PE changing etc. A tip from our QTVI was to fasten the school tie then cut the back off and sew on elastic so DD could put it on/take it off easily. As it happens, DD - after MANY hours of practice, as she can’t see herself in a mirror, managed to crack knotting a tie.
We colour coded all her school books with fluorescent pens so DD could pack her bag appropriately.
I packed a small torch in her school backpack so she could ‘see’ what she needed when she peered into the dark void.

If I think of anything else, I’ll post again, but to please feel free to message me if I can help in any way.

@SmaugMum Those tips are really brilliant. Secondary will be such a big step up. So much to think about. Not for a while yet but those tips are excellent! You are rocking it!

Have you looked at Sunshine House, Northwood? I don’t have a child with SVI but I live near this school - I don’t know much about it but I believe it’s linked to some secondary schools in the area.

Mill Hill County High School without a doubt. They gave a dedicated VI unit and specialist teachers. Very strong on the arts too.