Ellen,Bigcar,Lostinwales etc-can you advise on secondary transfer please?

[Penneyanne]

I have been re-reading the wonderful threads you lot had going in 2011 when your dcs were on the cusp of secondary transfer and have found them brilliant as a reference point for things to look out for/preparations that can be made in advance/things to ask school etc.
I am wondering ,seeing as you are all in your second year now, if you could feed back a little as to how it all went,was it as scary as you had feared,how did the dcs cope.what would you do differently if anything etc etc.
Ds is in his final year of primary and we have decided on a school-funnily enough we are not going for the one thats all geared up for SN but for another one that most of his friends are going to ,just feels right for him etc.But I am starting to get very anxious about the whole thing and how he will cope etc.
Thanks in advance ladies as I think I would find this really helpful..

I am debating whether to replace the lunch card. DS has lots of allergies so I feel safer if he takes sandwiches, but it seems most kids have lunches and he wants to fit in. I was toying with the idea of putting a bit of money on it so he could have something once in a while. The canteen is also open for snacks at break-time which is 11.15 and this i think is where he would spend the money - on things like pizza slices. I like the idea of thumb prints though.

That's what I was thinking alison. Send him with some lunch, but put some money on the account so he can have a drink and some crisps or something with his friends.

The problem is, the sandwich eaters have to eat in a separate hall to those buying from the cafeteria, which makes it awkward for ds socially. I don't think they'll cater for a vegetarian, coeliac with sensory food issues though.

Apparently there was mayhem when they introduced the system as lots of parents refused to allow them to keep their children's prints on record. They now have a signed agreement that says they won't release them to anyone and the records will be destroyed when no longer needed.

have namechanged since that thread! It all seems so long ago now. Ds isn't statemented so I was a little worried but actually it's all worked out better than we expected. At the beginning he was always on the phone when he got to school and on the way home, just for reassurance I think but that seems to have tailed off unless he has stayed for something after school. He still gets quite anxious about things but the pastoral support people have been good at talking to him and sorting him out.

they have the computerised registers at his school and every child with any additional needs is flagged up, so when the teacher does the register it is obvious who may need a little support and that has worked well for him. A few minor issues with bullying but the school was straight on it as soon as I told them. When he started they gave us the email addresses for senco, his tutor, head of year etc so it's been really easy to keep in touch with what's going on, much better than phoning. We also get the general weekly school email that has any events for the week, what's on for lunch and which week it is.

he's made good progress over the last year and has settled in reasonably well, the school have been really supportive which has made a massive difference compared to primary.

lovely to hear the updates from our old thread

Thanks Ninja, another reassuring story. I may even start unclenching my jaw soon if this keeps up!

Really pleased your ds has settled in well and the school seems on the ball.

Thanks everyone for all your feedback-its so encouraging to hear all your positive stories. Its great that all the boys seem to much prefer the rigid structure of the timetable as I could only imagine confusion and mayhem every time I think of the new timetable and how my ds will cope with it .So hopefully now that won't be the case.Sorry I havent been on lately-been having a quick read and catchup when I can.Blooming real life is a nuisance the way it gets in the way of Mumsnet sometimes.