Hi
Just looking for anyone who might have direct knowledge of either The Archer Academy or JCOSS' Sen provisions. I visited both schools for open evenings recently and was very impressed with them both and there excellent facilities but still left uncertain about the level of SEN provision and whether they would be the right fit for my son who has diagnoses of ASD/ ADHD (inattentive) and some mild auditory processing issues. He has an EHCP and ideally would like him to attain a few GCSEs which I understand the Pears Unit at JCOSS don't do. Find open evenings are hard as the schools always say all the right things and paint a glossy picture but know the reality could be different once you're there.
He's due to transfer to secondary next Sept and am incredibly undecided and stressed about where would be the best placement for him. He gets overwhelmed easily if the work seems too much or the pace too fast and know both schools are fairly academic and am not sure class sizes of 25+ will work well for him with potential background noises. Having said that, he has good cognitive ability and working to age related expectations but very low motivation and homework has been a regular flashpoint at home for as long as I can remember so dreading how much more that will be once at secondary. I'm also looking at more specialist schools but am worried that the potential for friendships might be less as that's the one thing that's incredibly important to him and makes going to school bearable for him. It might just be that we can't have it all and something will have to give but so it want to get it right the first time so his mental health doesn't take a battering with the wrong choice although realise there are no guarantees wherever we choose. Anyhow would be incredibly grateful to hear any personal experiences that might throw light one way or another. Many thanks.