UK Boarding School for Bright ADHD?

[Expatmomma]

Hello,

We are British expats... Looking for a UK boarding school for our son in a couple of years time when he reaches secondary school age.

And would welcome any recommendations.

He is very bright (measured high iq) and has an Ed Psych and Pediatrician diagnosis of combined type ADHD. He also had an Auditory Processing Disorder.

He is verbally very articulate and reads a lot but due to poor fine motor skills his handwriting is slowing him down. There is a large gap between his potential and his current achievement.

He had no aggression or conduct issues, but is hyperactive and impulsive. Struggling to sit still and not shout out the answers in class are issues for him.

He will be staring medication for the ADHD soon (hospital appointment next week).

We are trying to find either a mainstream boarding school with a track record for supporting children with similar profiles or a specialist boarding school.

I would prefer a school with a prep and senior section so that he can join at 11 and stay at the same school until 18.

We have a preference for Southern England/South East England with easy access to Heathrow or Gatwick.

So far I have pinpointed More House in Surrey as a possible but as he is not dyslexic am not sure of his chances of getting a place.

Any views on More House or other boarding schools would be gratefully received.

Thanks in advance.

Hi I just returned to this thread as I found it useful before and pleased to see that its been resurrected. My dh and I went to visit the school last year and were really really impressed. We spoke with the old headmaster who felt out son would be well suited to the school. He advised we waited for the new head to take up post and recontact them about taking ds for his assessment day. In the meantime ds had to change school and we have given him time to settle. Although initially things were ok they have started to deteriorate once again so we are back to rethinking our options. Expatmomma would you mind commenting on if you feel the school has changed much since the new head has taken over? I know he was very used to the school so am presuming its been relatively fluid. Also we would be looking for a boarding place and I would be interested to hear your perspective on boarding- I took the ofsted with a pinch of salt as what we saw was very positive! Our son is currently in year 5. Thanks in advance.

Hi
Can anyone please advise me on what good residential schools are out there for children with ADHD and fasd

Hi - my son probably is dyspraxic and ADHD inattentive. Which presents as bright but lazy, disorganised and apparently unconcerned about grades. We are tearing our hair out - wondering if he should go to a specialist school, but so hard to know. Not sure his issues are as severe as the kids in the specialist school but he doesn't seem to be coping with regular school and it's causing a lot of family stress. Thoughts?

Glad to see you chose More House. Both my boys went to More House from the ages of 8 and 9 until they left for mainstream sixth form (they could have stayed but wanted something different)
They came out with A* and As and lifelong friends. I started my Special Needs Jungle blog when they were pupils there and wrote a number of posts about the school. It's an amazing place and I would recommend it to any parent who has a son with Asperger's or ADHD who is average or above intelligence. (They don't take extreme behavioural difficulties though - just the kind that will subside when they're in the right environment. They screen carefully to ensure they only take on the kind of boy that they know they can help)
I hope your son has many happy years there.
Tania

Fargone, More House boys have a very wide variety of needs. However if you walked past the majority on the street you would not necessarily notice that they have special needs..

My son could have remained in mainstream but he would big have reached his full potential.

He was struggling to fit a certain mould ... By going to More House he could be himself and be accepted.

I would recommend you pay a visit and see how they could support your son.

Tania - I follow Special Needs Jungle it's excellent. So glad your boys did do well at More House. Thanks for sharing.

Hi Hoping to get my DS into More House shortly, Y7? Interested to hear from previous posters if everything is still going well with MHS?

To clarify, he has an offer of a place and we really like what we have seen. Again DS has multiple issues, dyslexia, dyspraxia, and ADHD so struggles to perform in a mainstream school but of average IQ. No behavioural issues and sweet natured!

I am the OP but have name changed since then.

He is really thriving and is a different boy from the one that joined More House 2 years ago. Best decision we ever made.

There is a parents' Facebook group and contact list. If you send me a pm I can point you in the right direction.

Ladies,

Firstly thank you for keeping this thread alive it was just what I was looking for. We are also British expats, with a 14 year old (about to start Y10) son high IQ, ADHD inattentive, anxiety and very low motivation (currently medicated for ADHD, psych wants to try anti-depressants to deal with his negative thinking about school. He has no disruptive behavioural issues and is a very kind child with awesome sense of humour. He is struggling in main stream and we are starting to deal with school refusal - he says its just too hard, too loud. He has very few friends and it is so difficult to see him struggling and watch his confidence disintegrating. We really don't know what to do and are considering if he would do better at a special boarding school where the routine and environment would be better for him.

I have looked up all the schools listed, but would be keen to hear how you made the decision to go to boarding also my ds has separation anxiety, i have rescued him from two school trips and this may just make this option impossible - did anyone else have concerns if their child would actually stay at boarding school or were the school able to handle this?

Thank you in advance for your advice.

Hi
DS is adopted and has underlying anxiety and attachment issues so although we considered boarding we dismissed it as too much for him. therefore we have taken the decision to relocate to Farnham to allow DS to attend MHS. However we are not expats and have the option to move house as DH's job is in London. I realise this doesn't help you much, but just to say I do understand your dilemma. We have wrestled all year with the disadvantages of giving up our home in Bucks to move to Surrey, versus advantage to DS to attend a specialist school! If your DS came to MHS he would have to do a try out in the boarding house, if he would give it a try that might help you to determine if he could hack it?

Thanks, Im going to speak to the school to understand how they have worked with separation anxiety in the past.

More House School first invites parents to attend a meeting and tour the school.

If they think they can meet your son's needs they will invite him for a 24 hour assessment.

This helps both the school and child understand if boarding is for them.

Boarding is not for everyone. My son is very self reliant and settled quickly. But he is a kid who would be quite happy to live alone on a dessert island as long as he had his laptop and an internet connection!!!

I would recommend contacting the school as a first step.

Hi, we live in the Cotswolds and I am thinking about senior schools for my son who has ADHD - its fairly low level, he is medicated but can sometimes get a little hyper. However, we would need a school who 'gets it' and is willing to make some adaptations for him in the classroom. Anyone know anything about private/independent schools in this area - Bath/Bristol/Cheltenham/Cotswolds? Thanks

Hi, we are a British expat family in Asia. This thread has been so helpful especially Expat Momma.

Our son is 12 (grade 7) in an International school, has ADHD combined Hyper/Impulsive and mild dyslexia. He also has auditory processing issues. Last year, since he switched to middle school he has suffered from severe anxiety and tics and everything just unraveled. We have just weaned him off his medication which he took for 1 year as it made his tic pattern become so complex.

The school decided they could no longer support him and due to no options here we started looking at specialist boarding in the UK. We narrowed down to More House and Bredon School which both look very good.

However, after sending his reports (4 years old), More house turned us down. I guess due to my sons impulsivity which can land him in a spot of trouble. Poor kid really doesn't know when he has over stepped the mark, which is worrying and heartbreaking. We have just had his Ed Psyche done and results will be ready in 2 weeks. Do you think its worth sending to More House again? He is academically average with some strengths and weaknesses.

However, Bredon have offered him a guest visit and DS is really excited to be in a supportive environment where he will feel accepted. I really hope it works out and we are making the right choice as we will have to stay in Asia for a couple more years before moving back to the UK.

Does anyone have any experience of Bredon? It looks almost perfect on paper but I am so so nervous.

@darlingbabs, Bredon School is by the coldwolds right?

Thanks

bump -- interested re girls too.

Just to add I dont believe More House take boys after Year 9 as I enquired for my son who is in Year 10 and they immediately said he was too old - such a shame as it sounds like a perfect school for him, high functioning Aspergers.

As I left it too late he is now struggling in a unsupportive mainstream with a highly unhelpful LA and no other options except failure.

I would also like to know how Expatmomma son is getting on at More House. I'm also looking at this school for my 13 year son who is diagnoised with ADHD (explains the challenges he has been having over the last 7 months!) we need a good nurturing school as he is also adopted so needs special care... - any thoughts?

I would also like to know how Expatmomma son is getting on at More House. I'm also looking at this school for my 13 year son who is diagnoised with ADHD (explains the challenges he has been having over the last 7 months!) we need a good nurturing school as he is also adopted so needs special care... - any thoughts?

Hi, this thread is very useful for us. He is oversea student in Asia. My son is 13 years old who is diagnoised high function ASD and ADHD. He is kind and no behaviours problem. We want to find private independent school for him. Plan to UK in September/2018. Our local agency suggested : Bethany school Cranbrook, Kent; Bredon school Bushley; Seaford college Petworth, Sussex; St David college Llandudno north wales.
We contact ST David's college directly, they offer the boarding place for my son.
May I know that any recommendations for me ? We plan to site visit UK school in August/2017.
For oversea student, what kind of support ?
The headmaster take care them or not?
Thanks

Can anyone give me any pointers how to find an intermediate level special school for a yr 8 child with global delay, possibly dyspraxia rather than any Specific learning difficulty.

currently in mainstream and just about managing with 1:1.. have written to Bredon, More House and Northease.... but I don't know where else to look. and a bit [desperate]

would consider anywhere but pref in the south

St Dominics www.stdominicsschool.org.uk/school_information
St Catherine's?? www.stcatherines.org.uk/ Might not be right
Sos sen have a list of schools will think if I can think of more

Do you need boarding if not what about egerton Rothesay eger-roth.co.uk

Hi all, this is such an interesting thread and has been very useful to follow.
We are expats in Saudi and looking for UK boarding school for our son who is year 5
He has ADHD, On autistic spectrum, anxiety issues amongst other things he his very small fit his age which doesn't help with his self esteem (internally, he would not tell us this)
He has no behavioural issues st school which is an international school, or outside of school with others, but we do have the behaviours at home, with us, which is the result of not coping st school maybe, letting off steam st loved ones when he gets home (usual for children with autism ADHD etc we believe)
He has issues with taking instructions from us and seeing to his own needs, which he is more than capable of doing, I think the routine and others doing these things independently would be a positive influence and encouragement for him
We need to stay in Saudi for a few years yet but think a boarding school would def suit and meet his needs more than here. He is very clingy/needy/attached to me which concerns me about leaving him and how school would manage this.
More house looks and sounds great and from this thread seems to be a great place for some children.
Had anyone had a child go there who is very attached and how have they settled? I want the best opportunity for my son but it breaks my heart to think he would be missing us so much that he would be always upset. I genuinely think he will thrive and I'm the one with the anxiety issues about leaving him! How does the school deal with those situations etc? I know there is a 24 hour assessment , just after a view from someone who has a similar concern?
Also, does anyone know of any similar boarding schools near Manchester? Which is another option as his grandparents live near there and it is close to the airport for us to visit