Hi - My 12yr old DS in Y8 has had a late ASD diagnosis after years of wait. He is currently in a semi-selective independent school where the fit is becoming increasingly hard given his issues with boundaries/rules, while the school is quite tightly rule bound. Ideally he will be best placed in a school that can support him on his SEN needs (ASD/ADHD), behavioural challenges (while still laying down the rules) with good sports offering (as he really enjoys athletics & sports). He actually enjoys large schools with big facilities, unlike some ASD kids who get overwhelmed - but would be good to have this with small class sizes given his focus & concentration and how much he needs to build up academically.
He is brightish (great at Maths but struggling a lot with others as secondary curriculum steps up - though got through current school's 11+) i.e. can't cope right now with selective schools. And tends to copy behaviours around him a lot i.e. prefer mainstream vs specialist school.
Now this is a lot to ask isn't it?! But reaching out to this wonderful MN collective wisdom for options please!! It's heart-breaking to see DS's confidence getting impacted :(