What matters to your child with special needs or learning difficulties is finding the school that best suits them as an individual and will give them the best chances in life.
But how do you decide what type of school or level of SEND provision is right for your child?
You may not need to choose because:
Good special schools have excellent parent-school-child relationships and communication and see this partnership as the key to success. Staffing levels in special schools tend to be higher and much more specialised. Therapy is usually integrated with teachers, TAs and therapists working as a team with each child. The specialist teams are adept at responding swiftly to changing and different needs.
With more generous staffing ratios, staff get to know each child as an individual, understanding their foibles, what motivates them, and what causes upset or angst. They are also trained and experienced on how best to help children and their families.
Special schools can be maintained by the local authority, voluntary or charity aided or privately run. They may be part of a larger group eg Priory Services. Most special schools follow the national curriculum, adapted and adjusted as necessary to meet the needs of the children. A good many have in-house care from a range of therapists, which may include a speech and language therapist (SaLT), an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist, or will have a NHS therapist assigned to the school.
An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is invariably required to get a place in a special school. This does not guarantee a place in a special school – or in any particular special school. Many parents spend years fighting long and hard for a place in a school they think best for their child. Neither does it mean that a child must go to a special school.
An appropriate education and good therapy provision can also mean:
Ultimately what matters is finding the right provision for your child. You want that provision to be flexible. As the needs of your child change, the type of school that best suits your child may change too. A good team across health, education and social care should work with you and your child up to the age of 25 to ensure that your child’s education will maximise their life chances and opportunities.
Need help? Perhaps you suspect your child has some learning difficulty and you would like advice on what you should do. Or perhaps it is becoming clear that your child's current school is not working for him or her, and you need help to find a mainstream school which has better SEN provision, or to find a special school which will best cater for your child's area of need. Our SEN consultancy team advises on both special schools, and the mainstream schools with good SEN support, from reception through to the specialist colleges for 19+. Special Educational Needs Index
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