16 yo daughter not able to enter 6th form

thank you for those links. Really helpful. 

it is definitely a real journey finding your way through the system. I really hope everyone gets where they want to be in the end. 

Yes they only care about students whom they can help get a university Place via UCAS in my experience. 

And university wasn't even on my radar to begin woth. 

It's a shame really as I was welcomed in to the sixth form being that I was previously a student at the main school and I was really enjoying music class but no apparently the subjects you enjoy don't matter. 

Looking back I should of maybe picked music and performing arts or music and drama to begin but even then there's no gaurebtee that would of helped my adhd. 

I feel like the teachers just viewed me as lazy

Hello, have been home schooling my son for 3 years. He is bright, articulate but suffers from extreme school anxiety. (Autism/ADHD/Dyslexia) We looked at a college over the weekend and he found it completely overwhelming and i am starting to think that this is not going to be an option. This worries me as my aim is to enable my child to keep making progress and eventually stand on his own 2 feet. I am starting to think about arts awards and D of E as a way to help him develop his social skills in a way which is less tied to college life. But I have no idea how to access this.

Like your daughter, my son is able and can find learning from home isolating. It is so hard to find the right balance and heart breaking when their fears stop them from doing what they want to do. Like you I do not know what I should be doing and often feel completely helpless. However, as a teacher I find the remarks about her being too late to start unhelpful and this must be adding to your stress. Can they not set her work to do at home? And remember there are no rules to say at what age A Levels should be done. The problem with the education system, is that it is inflexible. They will flex a little but ultimately a child has to fit in with the way the school runs. If a child cannot do this, then it is the parent and child who feel like they are failing. Or that is how I feel anyhow. 

You are not alone! 

Hi Alex,

Thank you for your reply. There's some very helpful information and links.

Our daughter hasn't had any friends for several years now. She finds it almost impossible to connect with anyone. I will see if she would try one of the young persons forums.

Both my wife and I will also reach out to the parent support helpline. We're feeling lost, guilty and are extremely fearful for our daughters future.

Kind Regards

Thank you for sharing your experience. Your experience confirms my concerns that beyond trying to help get my daughter on site the 6th form have little interest or have anything to offer.

I don't have any help unfortunately but here's my simple experiance I went to a performing arts collage and hated it (it to was too much dance not enough drama) so I applied to sixth form first year I was fine mostly but thr later half my ADHD kicked in real bad and I missed too much of my performing arts lessons so had to drop the class I decided to do music which was fine with them but it classed with a second year lesson so they said I had to drop out as you have to do 3 classes and I would end up missing too music where as in reality I would if sttneded music as it was more important to me than ICT or travel and tourism 

Hi Gez110,

I am sorry to hear about the struggles your daughter is having with attending college. 

We have a page dedicated to starting college or university with the support available for her at college in case this is helpful at all.

We also have a parent to parent helpline which you may find helpful. The Parent to Parent Emotional Support Service provides emotional support to parents and carers regarding their autistic children/grown-up children. The service is provided by trained volunteers with personal experience as the parent of an autistic child or adult. Our focus is on emotional support and understanding what it is like for you as a parent. We offer empathy, understanding, and a safe space to talk through your feelings and experiences. To request a call, complete a web enquiry form here: https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/help-and-support/parent-to-parent-helpline.

I wonder if you daughter may find it helpful to be part of a young persons forum, below are some options:

• The Ambitious Youth Network – online peer support for autistic young people aged 13–25. 
  The Mix – free support for under 25s, including a group chat for 11-25 year olds and discussion boards for 13-25 year olds.  

• Childline - free, confidential support for under 19s, offering message boards and tools to help with challenging situations.  

• You can also search for more services in our Autism Services Directory.  

I hope that other members of the community will respond and will be helpful too. 

Best wishes, 
Alice Mod