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It certainly seems that his current placement is not appropriate and they are struggling to meet his needs. It seems likely that the other issues you see with his behaviour are a result of the stress he feels at school. It is somewhat harder to know what you should be doing now.Sally's information about tribunals is good - but the process is fairly long (not to mention expensive). Furthermore at this stage you do not have a route to get to tribunal - you need an annual review or an emergency review. From where you are now it could well take a good 6 months to get to tribunal. Given he is in year 10 that could disrupt his schooling badly. I think at this stage you should be working with the LA to get the best possible option they are prepared to give - and then if you don't like that then consider the tribunal route. You need to consider all the options carefully anyway - independent schools can be very good but they tend to take pupils who have failed in mainstream rather earlier than yr 10 - often yrs 5-7, it may be your son's needs are less complex so they are not appropriate. Other options worth considering are schools that are more SALT/Dyslexia focussed - they often also cater very well for AS kids. There are also schools that are not specialist schools, but cater for children who do not thrive in mainstream for a variety of reasons. Or perhaps it would work just to move to another mainstream school that has an ASD unit - not necessarily to be in the unit but just so that the school has abundant ASD experience on site to help and advise.

It is clear that the current provision is not meeting his needs. Are you happy that they are fully implementing the statement in its current form? When was the last annual review? Your next action should be to ask the school to carry out an immediate emergency review on the basis that things are clearly going seriously wrong. They can call this at any time and if they admit that they can't cope then they should be happy to do so. It is good that the school are saying the can't cope - it would be even better to get that on the record. Faced with that the LA will have little alternative but to move him. You should start looking around to see what is available in your area, either maintained or independent - the next step from mainstream is likely to be mainstream with a unit - and that may well be more appropriate than a specialist school (that is just my personal prejudice). If you can go into a meeting with school and LA with a reasonable alternative placement in mind then there is a good chance the LA will agree pretty quickly.

I think you need to start looking at the bigger picture. This is probably not so much about him being bullied but more a sign that he is in the wrong educational environment. If he is struggling at this stage it is likely to get worse as he gets older, so you need to be thinking now about what sort of education is going to suit him and how to get that. In England I would say you need at least to consider specialist ASD provision - but I don't know about Scotland.

The AQ test is certainly not a diagnostic tool - those who get a low score can be pretty certain the don't have an AS condition - I think in controls 25% of NT people scored above the cut off. Given that current estimates are that about 1% of the population has autism you will see that the vast majority of people who score over the limit are not autistic Part of the confusion is that the label of Aspergers (or ASD) itself is a little arbitrary. It relates to the so called "triad of impairments" and you have to score above a certain threshold on all three to achieve the label AS. But the corollary is that just getting a diagnosis of AS is not necessarily much help in terms of how to understand the individual. Whether or not you have AS, looking at how the AS mind works can provide useful insights into how you think - you are likely to identify thought patterns in your own life that are like autistic people and that can help you to understand yourself. A diagnosis of AS can only be given by a Clinical Psychiatrist - on the NHS the referral would be through your GP but I hear it is difficult for adults to get an assessment - it must also be possible to see a psychiatrist privately. I think one of the reasons that is it hard to get a diagnosis as an adult is that the diagnosis is not really much help in pointing to interventions. Managing autism is really about managing the particular problems an individual faces in day-to-day life and the approaches are likely to be the same for anyone with those problems, whether or not the have AS. I certainly wouldn't tell your employer anything without a diagnosis. BUT if there are things your boss can do to make your life easier then you can always discuss those with them without being specific - you do have a diagnosis of something and you don't need to be specific. A good boss should always make allowances for individuals. FWIW reading your post you seem more similar to me (NT) than my son (AS). Looking at my son I see a lot of myself in him, just magnified or distorted. We share a lot of traits but in him they are more extreme, and he lacks certain balancing thought patterns.

It is a common problem with AS children that they pressure they feel at school overflows into challenging behaviour at home, but improving the school situation should improve things at home as well. He certainly seems to be getting on well in mainstream - so concentrate on getting the school trained up so they understand his needs and the (comparatively small) adjustments that will make his life much better (and therefore yours). Probably worth making a push to get him on "School Action Plus" as that means the school should get additional funding to meet his needs. However if he is progressing well at school and the problems are only coming out at home you may have problems convincing the school that there is an issue they need to address. Do also look carefully at how he is doing in school - he may be doing okay but could do better with more support.

AS/ASD schools are designed to help pupils who cannot cope in mainstream. Given that your son has only just got a diagnosis and has managed in mainstream up to now his is likely to be less impacted by his AS then most of the pupils at an AS specialist school. You definitely don't need behavioural problems to go to an AS school - in fact they are inappropriate for pupils with genuine behaviour issues. Many AS children will demonstrate challenging behaviour in the wrong environment - but this is a symptom that other fundamental needs are not being met and the sort of interventions that are appropriate for behavioural problems in a normal child are totally wrong for an AS child - never let anyone treat your son like that or suggest "EBD" type provision. Independent AS schools are expensive so the LEA will only pay for them if you have a statement, and to get a statement from where you are now is likely to take at least a year, probably more, unless his current placement falls apart totally. As a half-way house there are mainstream schools with an AS unit attached - these tend to work well for pupils who can cope in a mainstream class but need a bit of extra support. At this stage probably the most important thing for your son is to have some input from teachers with experience of ASD. That can be as little as an ASD outreach teacher giving advice on strategies to his current environment. There is a lot that can be done to make a mainstream school less hostile to an AS child, often with very little effort. An example would be allowing him to take a "Time Out" to get out of any situation where he is struggling to cope - letting him go to a quiet/calming place to settle himself.

As I'm sure you know, the meltdowns are not really the problem - they are a symptom of some other underlying issue. You really need to concentrate on identifying and resolving those underlying causes. However one technique that can help directly is teaching the child to monitor their own emotional state. This is often done with a 5 point scale - you get the child to assess how they are feeling at any time and teach them techniques to adopt when they get to a 3 or 4 (e.g. taking a time out) to stop. We are trying this with our son but not being particularly successful at the moment as he struggles to recognise his increasing anxiety in time. Other than that it is a matter of analysing what his needs are and making sure they are met. That has to start off with the school environment making sure the environment is suitable and that he has the specialised support he needs.

Almost all independent schools are happy to take parental referrals - we have only found one that won't except in exceptional circumstances (in fact an NAS school). I think this is much more appropriate than going through the LA as it gives the parents greater involvement and control of the process - and it also saves time. I think you said you already had specialist on your statement - in which case it is not the job of the inclusion officer to keep him in mainstream - her job is to implement the statement and so you should not find her opposing you. The only way they can is either if they change the statement back to mainstream, or if the propose an alternative specialist placement.

During school hours the school is in loco parentis so I presume as a teacher was present what they did was legal. However it is totally inappropriate A PRU is a totally inappropriate place for an AS child - if he is anxious don't let him go in. You need an understanding doctor who will sign him off sick

What school are you looking for? Is it independent or Maintained? I think you should take your son to see the school (or maybe more than one) and begin the assessment process. The LA can't name the school until they have said they are ready to give him a go (which will almost certainly be a trial period) so the sooner you start their assessment process the sooner it will all be settled. We did our first round of visiting schools without our son, but recently (once LA had agreed in principle to independent) have taken him round a few, and gone through their process. We think that keeps it low key so he doesn't get fixed on one particular school. If you are certain in your own mind where the right school is then you need to do everything you can to make that happen. The further you can get down the line the harder it is for the LA to say "no", and the easier for them to let you have your preference. It is also much easier for you to argue your case if you have the school itself on your side saying they can meet his needs.

If the school have said they can't meet his needs, and the LA have changed the statement then I don't think you can expect too much from them, it is up to the LA now. Yes things can go wrong very quickly - these children are under a lot of stress in a mainstream environment and the smallest thing might just push things over the edge. There have been times when I've worried that any day might be my son's last at his mainstream school. I should have said we are in the same situation, school have said they can't meet his needs and the LA have agreed in principle to independent but we haven't agreed where yet (he is 10, yr 6) so he is still going to his mainstream school but barely engaged, he is rarely in the classroom these days. I presume you have a named contact in the LA SEN department - why not talk to them and see what they will agree to. FWIW the LA are failing in their legal obligation - if the statement says special school he should be I. A special school now, or as soon as practical. However getting the LA to do anything about it is difficult - you could make a complaint but that can do as much harm as good. Have you been through the assessment process with your preferred school yet? If not then that is well worth doing.

I think unilaterally removing him from school is a dangerous move. You could do so on medical grounds if you can get a doctor to advise it - or you can do it to home educate - but then the LA don't have to do anything at all. Probably best to get agreement to keep him out of school. Either from the LA or by getting the school to exclude permanently. Why not ask for a meeting with school and LA ask discuss they question with them. it sounds as if it is in on one's interest for him to stay in school at the moment. The only word of caution is that having him out of school for a period before starting at the special school may make it harder for him to settle in.

This is a very difficult situation - we have been facing a similar problem with our son who has been having issues with another ASD child in the school. What it really means is that the school is not really the right place for at least one of the children involved - if not both. While a mainstream I have a lot of sympathy for the school - particularly if the children involved don't have the support they need (typically provided by a statement) so the school are left to cope with the issues arising from their underlying needs not being met. The way you address this will depend a lot on your relationship with the school and what you are trying to achieve. Firstly you are correct to characterise this as bullying - the school will be very reluctant to admit that, because no school wants to admit to having a bullying problem. Read their anti-bullying policy. If you are not happy make a formal complaint stating in writing that he is being bullied. It won't achieve much but it will get it on record. Note that you have the right to appeal to SENDIST if the school are not protecting him, but this may not achieve a lot. If you press the school on this you will probably get the other boy removed from the class - either to another class in the same school (if they have two classes for the year) or if not he may be excluded. Do you really want that? It may be worth having a talk directly to the parents of the other child to see if you can work with them to get a resolution. Between you you should be able to devise a better approach than the school can on its own. If you press the school then this will also impact their response to your grandson, it may even lead to him being excluded, or it may lead to them having a better understanding of his needs. Neither are necessarily a bad thing. In the end you need to work with the school to achieve the best outcome for your grandson. That is either getting him the support he needs in that school or getting him out of there into an environment that can meet his needs. It won't take long for you to work out whether the school is genuinely trying to help or whether they will never understand and you are best getting out of there now. If there is another mainstream school that you think may be more appropriate (and it is likely that there is give that he has recently been diagnosed) then you could use this as a bargaining chip with the LEA to get him moved there.

I would like to encourage our son to use electronic media to communication more, to encourage both his social skills and his writing/literacy. However on line communication is a minefield even for NT adults, let alone AS children. Anyone got any ideas about making this work, and safe?

The good independent experts fo tend to get booked up months in advance. People like SOSSEN will have a list of people they can recommend which is where we found ours. Where are you based and which experts are you looking for?

I agree that an ASD school can't assess a child unless they see him in that school environment. Some schools do offer to observe in his current school but I am not sure of the point. It cannot replace the assessment in the ASD school and the school can get a better idea of what he is like from the paperwork than a short observation in a setting in which he is already failing - there is so much luck in terms of what behaviour they see.

Yes - I was talking from the perspective of a child with ASD - In the case of our son it is hard to think of any reasonable PE curriculum that he could participate in without adjustments. But in this day-and-age why would anyone with ASD of school age not get a diagnosis? Once you have the diagnosis then the equality act takes care of the rest - the school must make reasonable adjustments

Children with special needs can be exempted from any part of the National Curriculum. In fact the PE curriculum seems a reasonable balance of competitive sport and individual (including Dance) So from the perspective of our NT child I like what I see. For the AS children no national curriculum will really work, but that is where the exemption comes in. For AS children I would like to see things like gymnastics, some form of circuit training where you can have individual goals and scores and the like. Sports like Swimming, Lifesaving, Orienteering, Sailing, Cycling and so on are all appropriate for many AS children depending on their particular strengths.

Have you actually made the formal request for statutory assessment? If not it is worth doing that immediately irrespective of anything else. They need to decide whether to assess within 6 weeks of making that request so it is not too long to wait - if they do assess it can take a further 6 months to get the statement finalised. I don't think it is a good idea to keep him in a place where he is miserable on the grounds of stability - you need to be planning some change. There could be something to be said for moving him now - particularly if you can find a school in the new location that is more SEN friendly. In the hope that he will cope better there while you go through the process of getting a statement. I can't speak for your particular circumstances, but I think if it were our family we would either turn the job down or move down there as a family as soon as possible (unless the job was likely to be fairly short term). It is hard to see any real benefits of planning to move down later. If your LA refuses to assess then it seems to be a "no brainer" to appeal and move immediately

I have to ask what on earth his school is doing that they haven't already requested Statutory Assessment. As others have said, requesting it is very simple - and no point doing more than the very basic letter at this stage because you will be asked for your input as part of the process. It is worth at the same time discussing this with your school and any other professionals who have been involved, so they are aware of what is going on. If you get them on your side it is likely to go much better.

What stage are you at now? Ideally you would want to go through the assessment stage in the context of his current school and LA. It could be tricky trying to go through assessment shortly after moving. Depending on the evidence of need the new LA would probably want to see how he fits into the new school to see what his additional needs are in that environment. What are you hoping that the statement will say? And how severe are his problems?

I agree it is not ideal for AS children - but then a lot of school isn't. On the whole I agree with including competitive sports in schools, and the fact that it disadvantages a certain part of the school population is not necessarily a reason to exclude it. What matters is how the school deals with AS children - but there inclusion is the best policy A PE curriculum that allows a reasonable degree of choice would help - so AS children can select appropriate activity

As stated - it used to be the case that Aspergers and HFA were distinguished in terms of language delay - so if there was no language delay then it was Asperger, if there was then it was HFA. Further research showed that that is not a significant distinction in terms of long term outcomes. In a recent diagnosis of our son I seem to recall had different levels for Asperger and Autism - indicating the Autism diagnosis was more severe. These days it seems normal to refer to them all as ASD (or is it ASC now) and that avoids all the confusion

I think we need more information before anyone can give advice. What is she trying to achieve and why did the specialist college fail? My suggestions would be (a) to talk to the college and get their take on why it failed - ask them what they would recommend and ( talk to other specialist education settings to see if they are more suitable. If things are not going well then it may be worth putting the idea of college to one side for a year or so and coming back to it a little later

That is a question that needs to be answered on several different levels. Immediately the question is how to manage a meltdown once it is happening - can be difficult to do - we find sometimes a firm hug helps, or distracting him - especially with jokes, and getting him into a quiet environment. Restraint of any form is usually a bad idea. At the next level you have to be able notice the signs of an impending meltdown - there are likely to be indicators in his behaviour that he is under stress and a meltdown is likely - he may engage in various self-calming activities such as fidgeting or you may detect the stress in his voice (not sure about a child as young as 4 though). More fundamentally. meltdowns are a sign that he has needs that are not being met. Concentrating on "managing the meltdowns" is missing the point. Over time you need to come to understand what his needs are and how best to meet them. So look into the SALT side, look at OT - and particularly the sensory side. Understand what causes him stress and what you can do to eliminate that. Common ideas are making sure you have a routine and prepare him for changes to that routine. Give him visual schedules for difficult parts of the day. Make sure he has somewhere where he can escape to when things get to much for him, and so on. The good news is that things should get better, Get the right environment and meltdowns and other behavioural problems should be drastically reduced. Don't ever let anyone tell you he has a behavioural problem, he doesn't, and don't trust people who concentrate on managing the behaviour rather than addressing the underlying issues.