London (north / central / east) schools for very high-achieving ASD girls

[Butterfliesandbutter]

Any suggestions on schools that cater well (or badly!) to the needs of very able autistic and / or ADHD girls? We're looking for secondary school, including independent, grammar, and comps, single-sex or mixed. Our DD has top-end CAT4 scores, but with ASD, she won't necessarily do well wherever she goes - though she has a reasonable chance of passing entrance exams. With all the challenges of becoming a teenage autistic girl, we want her to be somewhere that will support her if and when she struggles, and has an environment that is kind and supportive - rather than full of eating disorders, anxiety, mean girls, etc. At the same time, we hope she will achieve highly academically and will be somewhere where high marks and top university places are not too rare!

For example, any views on SHHS, City, Queen's, Latymer (state grammar), Forest, Bancroft’s, Chigwell? Or state comps like Mossbourne, Central Foundation, or Clapton Girls? Or others?

Or, points we should be looking out for when considering schools?

Does DD have an EHCP? Because if not, for state schools, the starting point needs to be where you realistically could get an offer of a place from.

Obviously it depends where you live, but Parli can be supportive.

No EHCP. I think we have a realistic chance at the state schools mentioned in terms of location, except Central Foundation, which I now realise has wildly different distance cut-offs for the 4 bands - none in top band admitted by distance!

I would probably rule out Mossbourne.
There are 2 Mossbourne academies and they are both incredibly strict with pretty poor sen support. Mossbourne academy in Victoria Park, from a friend's experience, is not autism friendly at all.
Clapton Girl's school is supposed to be calm and nurturing, but v hard to get in to if you don't have an EHCP or live pretty close.

Out of the state schools you list I would also go with Clapton girls’. The DC with SEN I have known attend Latymer have had very mixed experiences.

Thanks so much - that's really helpful. I know Mossbourne CA has an autism unit, so I would have thought they should be autism-friendly, but my impression was that they were totally inflexible and were happy to punish ND children for rule infringements linked to ND. But it's so hard to tell from the outside.

Does Clapton manage to support high achievers across the curriculum - in addition to being nurturing?

@EndlessLight can you say any more about Latymer - good and bad? Also any idea about what range of CAT4 scores kids who have got in have had?

Sometimes schools with ARPs are actually the more rigid schools. It is one reason ARPs don’t work for some.

The parents I know who haven’t been happy with Latymer’s SEN support have been unhappy because of the school’s rigidity in how they will provide support. This was especially the case in one case where the DC had ESBA from autistic burnout. On the other hand, I know parents whose DC with autism was well supported and thrived on the academic side of things. Others may have different experiences. After all, my sample size is small, and it isn’t firsthand experience.

No idea about their CATs scores, sorry.

Thanks!

What's an "ARP"?!

Additionally (sometimes called enhanced/specialist) resourced provision aka unit/base/provision/cabin…

@Butterfliesandbutter Hi, just wondering where you chose for your daughter and is she happy there?

My DC is at Latymer with dual diagnosis. DM me if you’d like

@readingrecord She's still in primary! So further comments gratefully received!

Thanks, @bickering, I may be in touch!

@Butterfliesandbutter its good to start thinking early. So many questions about settings that I wished that I had known! Very tough to find a setting with good pastoral care and high level academics. You’re sensible to start early

theres no perfect school so I can let you know the good and bad bits for us at Latymer and you can decide if it’s relevant for you

Mossbourne has been in the press a lot recently -
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2024/nov/23/teachers-at-mossbourne-academy-in-hackney-screamed-at-and-humiliated-pupils-say-angry-parents

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czjd383z9lyo.amp

@Blomme yes, my OP was before all that came out, but I'd heard similar on the grapevine, hence asking!

@Butterfliesandbutter
If your DD is in Y6, you must have got your offers. Hope you are happy with what you got. Would be good to know how you ordered your school choices and what offers you got. My DD has similar profile and in primary.
Thanks