moving to secondary school

[leasam]

hi, my son is 10, 11 this year and off to secondary school , ive just received the pack and im worried.

 

As with probably most of your children he doesnt cope with new situations very well and as a result when we moved house 2 years ago i kept him at the same primary school even though it means driving him there and back every day, but this also means i have taken him out of the catchment area for the secondary school i want him to go to and he wants to go to and all his friends are going to. Foolishly i thought that it wouldnt matter and that the primary school he went to automatically filtered him into the particular secondary school.

Now i find out i have to choose 4 schools and priority is given to children in the catchment area, then aload of other things.

 

Now i know that i can apply with a written letter from doctors etc, but how do i go about all this. He is not statemented, he only recieved help when he started the nursery and when he moved up into the infant school, he needs alot of help settling into places, this is the reson i want him to carry on with the other children he's spent the last 6 years with. He hasnt seen a pediatrician for about 5 years and clinical psychologist for about 3 years. he does get DLA at the middle rate for personal care and the lower rate for mobility.

 

How can i go about getting a letter from someone? does anyone think he is in with a good chance of getting a place at his chosen school and has anyone else experinced similar things?

 

thanks for your time and help in advance...

 

leasa

[PinkSapphireAngel]

Well I can see exactly where you are coming from with the idea of problems with changes and secondary school is of course one of the biggest!

 

But I will be honest with you..

I do not think getting into your chosen school will be easy at all, from my own current experience.

 

The statutory duty of the LEA admissions people is to offer each child a place at the NEAREST school with spaces. (Even if you do NOT list it as a preference BTW)

 

Schools citerias are all pretty much the same

 

Children with a statement

children with siblings already in the school

children living in the catchment area.

 

There is no harm getting a letter from any proffesional who knows your child and their difficulties (might be a good idea to get a referal to a paediatrician ASAP)

As you might be able to use this when appealing after not being offered a place at your first choice school.

 

I am sorry I cannot sound more positive about it for you, but basically without a statement children with SEN are treated no differently than those without SEN when it comes to allocating secondary school places.

[leasam]

thank you, i was pretty sure that it was going to be difficult. So im wondering now that if he doesnt get in to the prefferred school, what action can i take to make the transition as easy and as comfortable as possible? will he get any help with moving to somewhere that he knows noone, but at the same time, im not sure whether i want him to be noticed automatically as being "different" by the other children there....,

Even though he finds it difficult with transitions, children DO like him and they tend to look out for him and become friends with him. Even so this is worrying me sick. I am soooo unsure of what to do for the best.

 

His needs will be greater if he has to be moved to a school near us than tey would if he can go to the school near his primary.

 

Also could i get him statemented or is it too late, I have no idea about any of these things and i suppose im feeling pretty much like a failure because i know im really not going to beable to get the best for him this time.

Edited September 10, 2006 by leasam

[bid]

I got detailed letters from my son's consultant and his old Special Needs Health Visitor in this situation.

 

I think you need to detail things like the problems he will have if he has to travel independently to Secondary school, his severe problems with anxiety, etc.

 

If he gets DLA including the mobility aspect you can include this to show any difficulties outside.

 

As for Statementing...have a trawl through this Education section, as there is loads of information. Also look on the IPSEA website which should have step-by-step instructions, etc. You or the school, or both of you, can apply for a Statement.

 

Good luck!

 

Bid

[Kazzen161]

>>Schools citerias are all pretty much the same

 

Children with a statement

children with siblings already in the school

children living in the catchment area.>>

 

Our criteria are: Statemented children

Looked after children

Children who have a particular need to go to this school (backed up by letter)

Catchment

Siblings

Other

 

I am not sure how much chance you have of getting in under the third category. You also need to be careful, if you apply out of catchment for your first choice and do not get in, then you may not get into your second or third choice either.

 

Karen

[leasam]

thanks alot, im going to try and get hold of all relevant people today....... wish me luck

[nellie]

Hi Leasam,

 

This link to ACE (Advisory Centre for Education) has information on School Choice, Admissions & Admission Appeals.

 

http://www.ace-ed.org.uk/advice/faqs.html

 

Hope it helps.

 

Nellie xx

[Karen A]

Hi Leasam-I don't have any more advice but wanted to let you know you are not alone in finding this all a bit stressful.We have 2 boys.Our older son goes to secondary school next Sep.We also got the info pack on Fri.Our younger son age 8 has Asperger traits and has a statement.We would like to keep the boys together as J is very supportive with his brother.However because J is older this will probably not count.If they end up at seperate schools it will make things very complicated.Talking to other parents getting a school you are happy with is stressful even without extra factors to complicate things.Karen

[leasam]

thanks for your replies, the school is having a meeting tonight about moving up to secondary, so im off there later, ive also tried to explain to my son that he might not be able to go to the same school as his friends, but he seemed to start worrying already and anxious behaviours are already showing i have my fingers crossed and hope that it will all turn out ok......

[Karen A]

Hope the meeting is helpful.I am going to find out if J's school are going to have one.Have spent the morning trawling through OFSTED reports.I think if J only gets offered a place at the one currently in special measures I may join the home school crew here. Karen

[ksasnic]

I am too in this very difficult situation. I have to choose a school for my son... I went to look round one with a special resource unit and to be frank I left and burst into tears.. the person who ran the resource unit basically didn't want Nick at all. My fault for explaining his needs etc before the look round. she kept me waiting 10 mins at the beginning then rushed me round the school dumped me in the reception area for 20 mins while she took a call. then in the reception area asked me whether I had seen enough so I pointed out that I would like to discuss their senco practice etc finally taken into a small room and there she proceeded to tell me in a roundabout way yet the implication was there that I was molleycoddling my son and am putting on my worries onto him and that most kids had no problem away from mum etc and that he would not have any problems getting the bus to school either despite it being a public bus and not a school only coach. !!! I was gobsmacked as she also kept pointing out the negative side of the school and as to my question on lunchtime supervision as this is on my sons statement she basically told me that they don't provide this but when I said if it is on the statement then they have a duty of care to fulfil that need in the statement etc her reply was oh we have ways round that !!! At that point I told her that there was no need showing me round any more of the school as it was quite obvious she just didn't want my son there and left...

 

I was fuming, shocked and upset... It didn't help that this came at a time when my friend had told me that she had a major row with a now ex friend of ours because this so called friend had said I had caused Nicks problems.

 

Felt so flat afterwards.. and mad.. How dare this bleep who knows nothing of my sons difficulties treat him and me in this way.. and that goes for both the school and the now totally ex friend..

 

Problem is that I really thought that this school might have held a bit of the key to Nicks placement now it is sooooo off the list..

 

I am to arrange an appointment at a special school with the parent partnership lady but am now scared that they will not think him shall we say special enough and so mainstream school will be the only option. if so the school that I looked round was his catchment school...

 

arghhh I just don't know what to do... have heard about dual placements but then how does this work for secondary...I think this might be an option for Nick as he would be at a special school (if I can get him in) and then at a mainstream school to help him with his social skills - oh god sorry I am now rambling... I know though that he wants to go to a smallish school as he goes on sensory overload but where are the smallish schools these days.. 1200 is the size of the secondary mainstream ones and thats just about 1199 too many !!!!

 

anyway sorry for the rambling - any help please though would be totally gratefully received

[bramblebrae]

I think I would request another meeting and take a tape recorder with me this time and someone official like parent partnership and ask her exactly how they get around not doing what legally enforcable statements require them too, after asking if it was ok to tape of course. She had no right to talk to you like that she hasn't even met your son. I would definetly complain to the school and the LEA about her outrageous behaviour towards yourself and the statement process.

 

I hope you can find something suitable for him though.

take care

Lorraine

[pumpkinpie]

LEASAM I had a friend in similar circs to you. She had to move out of the catchment area but still bused her kids to the original school. To start with she was refused a place but they appealed and won. She got letters fronm her daughters gp and consulant. The head of the primary school and class teacher also wrote.

 

Have you considered meeting with your primary head/teacheer and seeing if they will do you a letter of support, they know your childs needs and the lea sould listen to them?

[pumpkinpie]

Ksanic I am really appauled at the way you were treated by this so called professional! You have a choice let her get away with it and be hurt or get even!

 

I would either revisit the school with parent partnership or someone in the know or write a letter and complain. Maybe if you are brave enough write asking to look around with ... because you fell you need support after the way you were treated egxxxxxx.

Unfortunatley too often these people are allowed to hurt us and we are too emotional and exhausted to respond, however the less we complain and challenge these professionals the longer this behaviour and ignorance will go on. You may never want to see this person again but she will keep on doing this until she is made to stop!

[Kazzen161]

If this is the way the staff of a resource unit behave, what hope do we have?

 

Does your son have a statement? If so, have a look at your local small independent schools (who may be able to offer the TLC he needs) and AS specialist schools (eg:the Priory Group, the Cambian Group, and many others). There are schools that can offer the help an AS child needs, but also a mainstream level curriculum.

 

I find it hard to see how shared placements can work well - if he does mornings in mainstream, then eg: he may miss some of the maths lessons, etc.

 

Karen