Residential ... decisions!!

hi - this is a difficult decision because you have to decide what's best for your son but also for your family.  That's when it becomes complicated, emotional, etc.  How wd your son feel about going to a residential school?   My son went to 1 for 10 yrs.  We believed that a 24/7 situation wd be more helpful to him than a 9 - 3pm situation.   He came home every fortnight + holidays.  Parents had the choice of when their child came home, except for xmas, when the school closed.  We think the school helped him in maany ways.  It is vitally important that your are comfortable in your mind about the school your child may be going to.  So check, check + check again all sources of info on it, inc the statutory inspection bodies.   Visit - a few times,  meet staff, the governors, other parents etc.  Ask your questions.   No school is perfect.   When my son went he initially went as a day pupil to settle in + then started as a fortnightly boarder.  You worry at 1st about how things are going.  You lie in bed wondering + feeling anxious about how he is + if you actually have made the right decision.  I wd ring in the early days.  A good school will understand this.  There were (literally) a few ups + downs over the yrs, but nothing that lasted v long at all.  He was happy to come home but happy to return to school.  If he'd been unhappy about returning then that wd have been a great concern which wd have needed serious investigation.  He had a home to school book which he came back with so we cd read notes from staff + we wrote about how he'd been whilst with us.  On a bit of a downer - can I say that we had a massive battle to get him there.  That was in the early 90s.  It took 2 yrs. The LEA tried everything to stop us but eventually we succeeded.  As budgets are squeezed + squeezed again by central government, councils + schools will be looking to spend less so you may have a battle.  So, can I ask, is there anything about your present situation that his school or social services cd be of more help with which may change your mind about pursuing a "residential" setting?  Sometimes parents look at residential because their child + themselves are not getting adequate support from services in their locality.  If you are set on residential then it is still worth asking his school + social services if they can provide extra help in the meantime, if you haven't already.  bw

hi - this is a difficult decision because you have to decide what's best for your son but also for your family.  That's when it becomes complicated, emotional, etc.  How wd your son feel about going to a residential school?   My son went to 1 for 10 yrs.  We believed that a 24/7 situation wd be more helpful to him than a 9 - 3pm situation.   He came home every fortnight + holidays.  Parents had the choice of when their child came home, except for xmas, when the school closed.  We think the school helped him in maany ways.  It is vitally important that your are comfortable in your mind about the school your child may be going to.  So check, check + check again all sources of info on it, inc the statutory inspection bodies.   Visit - a few times,  meet staff, the governors, other parents etc.  Ask your questions.   No school is perfect.   When my son went he initially went as a day pupil to settle in + then started as a fortnightly boarder.  You worry at 1st about how things are going.  You lie in bed wondering + feeling anxious about how he is + if you actually have made the right decision.  I wd ring in the early days.  A good school will understand this.  There were (literally) a few ups + downs over the yrs, but nothing that lasted v long at all.  He was happy to come home but happy to return to school.  If he'd been unhappy about returning then that wd have been a great concern which wd have needed serious investigation.  He had a home to school book which he came back with so we cd read notes from staff + we wrote about how he'd been whilst with us.  On a bit of a downer - can I say that we had a massive battle to get him there.  That was in the early 90s.  It took 2 yrs. The LEA tried everything to stop us but eventually we succeeded.  As budgets are squeezed + squeezed again by central government, councils + schools will be looking to spend less so you may have a battle.  So, can I ask, is there anything about your present situation that his school or social services cd be of more help with which may change your mind about pursuing a "residential" setting?  Sometimes parents look at residential because their child + themselves are not getting adequate support from services in their locality.  If you are set on residential then it is still worth asking his school + social services if they can provide extra help in the meantime, if you haven't already.  bw