Daughter can’t go back to 6th form- what now??

[PacificFish]

My dd is 17and is just finishing her first year of 6the form. But she’s struggling a lot with her mental health and school is making it worse.
They really have been crap.
if we take her out now, what next?

Can she take a year or two out to focus on her MH then try again (if she wants)?

I was told by another friend that would affect the funding - she will have not completed the first year to be honest.
Is it ok she is out of education?
What should I do with her otherwise?

She will still have funding if she has not yet completed a L3 course.

Can she go to an FE college?

We are looking for a suitable FE course.

She wouldn't get the funding for further education if she took a year or two out, unfortunately. It only goes up to age 19.

She could start year 12 elsewhere and take different subjects/BTEC instead of A levels.

1. If you take her out completely no one will care, but your child benefit will stop.
   Then later she could do a foundation / access course for university if she ever wanted to.

2. If her MH is so bad she is stopping college then she needs help, unless you really think it is the school that is causing it. Wait lists on the NHS can be long. Has she seen a GP? Is she on any medication or getting counselling? If not then getting help is probably a priority. Consider going private if you can afford it.

3. Unless you have good reason to believe she will be better with her MH by switching to a BTEC then watch out. She may just feel uninterested if she really wants to do A levels. However the routine is good so it's a balance.

My y12 DD has just done a Level 1 course at college still recovering from major MH issues. Because the course is relatively easy she has been able to only have ~75% attendance and still be the first on her course to finish. It has been good to keep something going, but still have the flexibility to have down days.

MH is the most important. Everything else has to work around that more or less. The difficulty is working out what is best for MH.

Best wishes.

Taking her out could be important for her mental health but it will affect funding - she is funded up to 19 yrs. If academically her goal is university she should then look at 19 plus education - Access courses delivered by Further Education Colleges - 1 year. You get a loan to study but this is wiped once you successfully progress to uni.

My 19yr old has just stopped 6th form. She completed yr 12 as 17yr old but was very ill with an eating disorder so didn't attend at all in yr13. She restarted yr 12 again in September but a few weeks ago we decided to stop. School was where her ED was strongest so it wasn't a helpful place for her (nothing against the school/staff). It's been such a positive move. She's working in a restaurant and is concentrating for next 6/9/12 months on getting better and being happy instead of anxious and sad. Who knows what future holds but for today it was the right move.

does your Dd need some space to think what will make her happy and contribute to improving her health before jumping into another college situation?

I think that the funding refers to start date though, so if she took one year out, provided she started an A level or BTEC course by 19, she would be funded for the duration of the course. Check this though, in case I am talking out of my hat!

Another option would be a medical PRU.

These are not the same as the PRUs the naughty kids (I'm being flippant) go to. They are small units, some are residential, most are not, some are located in hospitals.

They have teaching staff but also staff to attend to medical needs both physical and mental.

OP
There is a lot is misinformation about funding on this thread. Please get proper advice from someone in real life.

Funding is largely dependent on whether or not someone has a L3 qualification or not.

Thanks for this- who would be able to advise in real life?

I'd think your local college would know most of the rules as they'd be the people applying them. There is probably a difference between adult funding to do L3 qualifications / access courses and funding to do them as part of 16-19 education.
I'd phone local college and ask to speak to admissions and go from there maybe?

A medical PRU or any kind of medical needs tuition is highly unlikely post 16 as the LA’s statutory duty to provide education to those unable to attend school only applies to compulsory school aged pupils.

If DD’s MH difficulties are significant you should consider applying for an EHCNA. The benefit of this is it can include therapies without the need to sit on normal waiting lists.

Here are the funding regulations. A pupil who is 16, 17 or 18 on 31st August prior to starting their course will continue to be funded for the whole programme. And as DD is unwell you have a good argument for resitting, which are only funded in exceptional circumstances.

Your daughter is only 17, so would most likely be allowed on most 16-18 programmes.
Check out local colleges 😊

In theory they should be in education or training until they are 18. You would be able to restart a course at College in September. Does your DD have any idea what she would like to do? You could consider an apprenticeship. My Dd has struggled with her mental health since leaving school and is now finishing a 3rd year at College🤞🏻. Some just don't like education but it does help if you know what you like. Get some advice from College. Good luck.

@PacificFish I know someone who has dropped out of y13 without sitting any exams and is applying for university access courses, as a bridge to doing a BSc the following year.

More info about the Access to HE Diploma here: qips.ucas.com/qip/access-to-he-diploma

You can do the Access Diploma with the Open University too.

She can repeat Year 12 year at another school as she will be funded a school until she is 19. However, she may not be allowed to take the same subjects as there is some rule about this. But if you speak to the school - usually the governors and explain the circumstances they will often overlook this and allow it, although they may ask for a letter from the doctor.

You are late to apply for schools but contact any schools you are interested in. Good luck OP, I hope your daughter feels well enough to make a new start in September.

She doesn’t want to do A levels, doesn’t like being taught.
She’s got 9 GCSEs- all 7-9.
Shes going to see a psychiatrist in a couple of weeks.
Shes August born. And will be 17 this coming august- does that mean she has to be in education next year or can she take a year out?

I looked at this for my daughter. They generally don't take post-16s.

There are plenty of funded courses available past the age of 19. It often depends on whether you have already achieved that level of qualification or not, but I've certainly done funded courses well into my 20s, even in my 30s, and I left school with A-levels.

I'd let her have some time out and look into college once she's feeling up to it.

Resits and retakes are funded in exceptional circumstances, including long term illness, so resitting the same subjects shouldn’t be a problem.

I would enrol her at the open university to sit her A levels or a diploma or the local college? Or even homeschooling could work with a tutor a few times a week depending on your financial situation, it needn't cost a fortune and she could still gain the qualifications and have the time to move on with her peers if she is well enough.

I am so sorry you are going through this op. It sounds really hard none of us ever envisage some of the things we have to worry about as parents once they become teens. Can you get some professional advice from the school careers advisor?

She should be in education or training, however in reality they don't do anything if she's not. You may lose child benefit etc. if she's not, although she may be able to claim something in her own right.