Hi,
my son attends a specialist ASD Support Centre attached to a mainstream school. It is a new unit reluctantly provided by the LA to provide help for children who were not able to access mainstream schooling but were not suitable for the local specialist schools because they did not have learning disabilities.
We have just come from the Year 9 options evening where it appears that the only gcses our children will be put forward for are Maths and English (those they HAVE to be put forward for) all other courses are lower ability. This is despite the fact that we have been told by subject teachers that they would be capable of taking gcses in other subjects. We were told that unless they are able to go to the mainstream classes they cannot take them due to timetabling issues. In other words it seems to me that what they are saying is, although they are academically able they just need to turn down their autism a bit so they can fit in with us.
When we accepted a place at this centre we made it clear that there was little liklihood that they would access mainstream but we did want them to benefit from academic study and reach their full potential - otherwise we might as well have sent them to special school.
Does anyone know of what responsibilities a school has to promote the children to achieve their best results? I feel they are being neglectful in their duties by knowingly keeping them back from reaching their full potential and being told I could send him to college after he's finished schoo,l indicates that they are abdicating their responsibilities.
Thank you
