My son is 9 and has autism. We have had lots of issues with attendance over the last year but he is slowly improving in this regard. He went back to school last week after Christmas break and has moved seats. He is upset as he is now sitting beside a little girl who he claims has a strong smell. I’ve tried explaining to him that he needs to be kind and that this could be this case for various reasons. He would never actually say anything to the little girl but is back to refusing to go to school as he says the smell overwhelms him and he feels sick, so he can’t focus and can’t get his work done. He told me that the rest of the class has commented on the smell and that he feels very sorry for her as she gets picked on, but he can’t stomach the smell at all.
He struggles with smells at the best of times- we can’t use car air freshener or visit farms etc as he can’t cope. And I think he genuinely is struggling with this. However, he can’t simply just go back to not attending school. I’m sure what, if anything, I can do. I can ask if it’s possible for him to move seats but if they ask why, it’ll look like we are being nasty. He is also receiving counselling which he gets in school and he has had issues with engaging before, but is doing well with this particular counsellor. So, I don’t want to risk him not going to school and missing that too
How do I manage this sensitively?