ADHD and starting secondary school

[happygelfling]

My daughter was diagnosed with ADHD last weekend. She has the hyperactive/impulsive subtype. We are in the early stages of understanding what this means for her, and the support she would benefit from in school.

She will start secondary school in September (in England). I'm going to a parents evening at her secondary school tomorrow evening and there is an opportunity to meet the SEN team.

I would be really grateful for any suggestions of what I should ask about at the open evening. What can I ask about now that will help to get appropriate adjustments in place for my daughter in September?

Many thanks for your suggestions!

Has she got an EHCP or a SEN plan in place already?

If not, I'd be looking to have a conversation about getting a SEN plan in place. Have a look at the SEN Code of Practice and have a think about possible actions under each of the four headings. (You could ask what is working with other ADHD students). This might include use of fidget toys, movement breaks, timeout passes, agreed emotional support arrangements in the event of dysregulation, a pen portrait being circulated to all subject teachers that contextualises DD, extra support on navigating around school and extra help with personal organisation etc etc...

I think I'd be asking whether you can aim to get the plan in place in September - can you offer to send ideas for a first draft?

Worth establishing what the SENCO will lead on, and what the pastoral lead is responsible for, and how you should go about trouble shooting any issues.

Is there any summer school option for SEN children to come into school?

Thank you, that's a really helpful answer!

No ECHP/SEN plan at present as we've only just had the diagnosis. Primary school didn't refer her as she is not disruptive and is doing fine academically so, while her individual teacher is lovely and supportive, the school SENCO is not interested - she has much more challenging children to prioritise.

Thank you for the useful pointers. I'll definitely look at the SEN Code of Practice.

Good Luck OP!

Think the golden rule of SEN parenting is, however inexpert you may feel following diagnosis, you know/care more about your child than anyone else, and will need to make the running in terms of getting their voice heard and needs met (if only so DD is well understood and doesn't keep getting negative feedback for her ADHD traits).

Is she on medication? (Titration whilst in her primary class would be good as you'll have a class teacher who knows her and can feedback on the effects of meds?).

I have attached a nice resource on Women with ADHD. Good luck!

Is DD having enhanced transition? I think that is probably the most pressing issue.

EHCPs are based on needs, not diagnosis.

Thank you for the helpful responses.

DD's not on medication, and we were advised by the psychiatrist to try other methods of managing ADHD first - which is my preference too. She did advise us that if we want to try medication ahead of GCSEs then we should start in early year 10 and not leave it to the last minute! We definitely have some parenting skills and support arrangements to try first.

Good to hear that EHCPs should be based on needs not diagnosis. There are some types of support for ADHD that wouldn't help my daughter much, but a lot that could/do. My short experience so far is that the diagnosis is needed to get school to listen and accept that there needs to be some discussion of needs/support.

I haven't heard about an enhanced transition option, so I'll ask about that this evening.

Thanks!

Schools must make their best endeavours to meet a pupil’s SEN, diagnosis or not.

Worth reading around the question of medication. Was talking to a diagnosing Psych who has changed her own mind on this given the evidence base is now showing the effectiveness of meds in speeding up the 'slow'areas of brain activity associated with ADHD in 70-80% of people. Lots of options for how meds are taken, too.

Thank you for the helpful advice. I went to the school open evening earlier today and met the SENCO.

She described learning plans for SEN children. She talked about meeting needs, whether a child has a diagnosis or not. She described how they disseminate information to teachers.

It sounds like she spends lots of time over the summer writing learning plans for new year 7s. She asked us to send what information we have to her, then she would invite us to discuss the learning plan in September.

Having her so many stories of inadequate provision, I was impressed with her approach.

She advised that an EHCP assessment is only needed if my daughter needs an alternative setting or more than £6k's worth of support from the school. Fidget breaks for exams are assessed separately.

I also met another mum who's DS1 has ADHD and is yr8 - she had lots of good things to say about the support her son is receiving.

Obviously, we need to see how implementing a plan for DD actually works in practice, but I am feeling optimistic at the moment.

Thanks again for your helpful advice so that I could go in with some useful questions and a basic understanding of what to expect.

I am glad they were helpful.

She isn’t quite right about EHCPs, they aren’t only for when an alternative setting or support worth more than £6k is needed. But exam access arrangements, including movement breaks, don’t require an EHCP.