Work experience woes

[Sunnymeg]

DS 15 Aspergers. Secondary school have recently reintroduced work experience at the end of Year 10. DS has had a couple of assemblies on how to apply for a place and came home with a list of employers who offer places. DS is very socially inept and struggles with people he doesn't know. He wants to do something computer based. We have written to 10 people on the list, that we thought were suitable. Without exception, they have all come back saying that they no longer have the capacity to offer work experience placements or they cannot offer anything for the week he has to do it. DS is now thoroughly disengaged from the process, as it appears that the school haven't updated their list since work experience started up again. School have said that they will find something for students who fail to find their own placements and this would be somewhere like a local supermarket or cafe . This would totally freak DS out. I am considering going back to school, telling them we have tried and that they need to find something that is suitable for him as we have done our best.
What do people think?

Are you allowed to approach other employers yourself, not from the school's list, to see if you can arrange something yourself? Can the school permit your son to do his work experience on a different week if it's not possible to find a placement on that particular week? They should really show a bit of flexibility under the circumstances.

I work in IT for a big financial corporation and we regularly take work experience students age around 15, for a week. I hope you can find something good for him, what's the point in packing him off to a supermarket or cafe for a week of hell if he won't gain anything positive from the experience.

We are allowed to contact employers who are not on the list, but they are strongly encouraged to apply to those on the schools list as all the health and safety and insurance details have already been dealt with. We may have to pay for school to do the admin work if we go with someone off the list, but school did not want to/could not give me a figure when I asked. It's an Academy. There isn't any flexibility for him to do alternative dates.

What are the school/Senco doing to help source a setting for the work experience? It's different for "our" kids. They should be helping. Seriously. Does your DS has a Statement or EHCP? What's in his IEP for this?

My DS has Aspergers and is 15. School were key in organising the work experience.

Thank you Eliza DS has an IEP. I hadn't thought of contacting the Senco directly, as all the information has come from the careers section.

I'd ask to see the Senco in person and explain the effect is having on your son's morale. It's SO important to foster positive experiences in this transition period into work/early adulthood. They need to step up and assist.

Excellent advice, have emailed her to ask for an appointment

Hello Sunny. How'd you get on?

Hi Eliza, not too bad. They will arrange for him to go and help in the IT department of a secondary school in the next town if he hasn't found anything by the end of term. They still want him to carry on writing letters and keep trying to find something himself , although did take the point that the database isn't up to date and said they'd review it. Not holding my breath, but then we won't need to use it again.

Good. Not exactly falling over themselves to help though!

Bless him!