Mainstream or special?

The Rise looks brilliant and I wish I had something like that close by for my daughter.

My own experience of mainstream school for my daughter has been very mixed.  She went to a brilliant primary school that worked hard to provide her with full support despite not having a diagnosis or a statement.  The only thing I'd have changed about that experience is the senco possibly picking up the signs of ASD in girls but thats not her fault.

My daughters first high school was brilliant too - it fed on from primary, lots of transition work plus she was in the nurture group - a class of 15 children with at least one TA in every lesson, often 2.  The children all had some sort of SEN but my daughter thrived because she became top of the class in one or two subjects due to her good reading and spelling abilility.  

We then moved house (from Lancashire to Dorset) to be near my family for support.  the school here has a good reputation however it was huge (1800), had mixed ability and large classes and they took no notice of the transition information from the previous school.  The previous senco had told me she didn't think it was the right school for my daughter after talking to them on the phone and she was right.  They threw her in at the deep end and she sank.  She doesn't attend anymore and we're currently playing a waiting game with the LA for a statement and to see what they can offer.

Your school sounds as though the HT is desperate to have a school full of NT children and an easy life.  I personally believe that inclusion isn't right for many children on the spectrum but a good understanding school can work to make the enviroment as suitable as possible.  I'm not sure I'd change my experience of mainstream for my daughter but I certainly would do for secondary.  If she'd have been diagnosed much earlier though, maybe I'd have felt differently but because she was so compliant at school, there never seemed to be much of an issue and the medics put down my descriptions of her meltdowns to over exageration and bad parenting.

The Rise looks brilliant and I wish I had something like that close by for my daughter.

My own experience of mainstream school for my daughter has been very mixed.  She went to a brilliant primary school that worked hard to provide her with full support despite not having a diagnosis or a statement.  The only thing I'd have changed about that experience is the senco possibly picking up the signs of ASD in girls but thats not her fault.

My daughters first high school was brilliant too - it fed on from primary, lots of transition work plus she was in the nurture group - a class of 15 children with at least one TA in every lesson, often 2.  The children all had some sort of SEN but my daughter thrived because she became top of the class in one or two subjects due to her good reading and spelling abilility.  

We then moved house (from Lancashire to Dorset) to be near my family for support.  the school here has a good reputation however it was huge (1800), had mixed ability and large classes and they took no notice of the transition information from the previous school.  The previous senco had told me she didn't think it was the right school for my daughter after talking to them on the phone and she was right.  They threw her in at the deep end and she sank.  She doesn't attend anymore and we're currently playing a waiting game with the LA for a statement and to see what they can offer.

Your school sounds as though the HT is desperate to have a school full of NT children and an easy life.  I personally believe that inclusion isn't right for many children on the spectrum but a good understanding school can work to make the enviroment as suitable as possible.  I'm not sure I'd change my experience of mainstream for my daughter but I certainly would do for secondary.  If she'd have been diagnosed much earlier though, maybe I'd have felt differently but because she was so compliant at school, there never seemed to be much of an issue and the medics put down my descriptions of her meltdowns to over exageration and bad parenting.