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U2 Where The Streets Have No NameAnger Over Autistic Students' Move to Mainstream School
A group of parents of five autistic children on the Island are questioning why they have suddenly been told their children are being transferred out of special school and into mainstream school.
The students all currently go to Medina House, a school for children with special needs. But the Isle of Wight Council says instead of moving up to the next school, St George's, they no longer meet the criteria.
Joanne Wight's son Ben is among those affected. He has already been taken out of mainstream education because he couldn't cope. Joanne told IW Radio: "You can't describe that sinking feeling, when you think your children are just going to be pushed back into mainstream, where he's already been and hasn't coped. How's he going to cope in that setting of, what 1300 children? He can't even cope walking down into Newport."
Meanwhile, Cathy Gibbs told us that if her son Corey has to move to mainstream schooling, it will have a major impact on his wellbeing and possibly other students. She told us of one incident involving his teenage sister: "One of them was doing some craftwork and he just picked up the nearest thing to his sister and threw it at her. He wasn't meaning to hurt, he was just angry and threw. It was a pair of scissors that stuck in the back of her head and we had her at the doctors. My other daughter's got a scar on her elbow where he's thrown a car at her. I've been to the doctors with suspected broken ribs. In a mainstream school, who's going to get into trouble if he lashes out at other children?"
And Cathy added: "We're still in shock, because nothing has actually been offered to us properly. We don't know what's coming next. We know what high schools are like and we know that's not suitable for our children, but we feel as if we've been thrown headfirst into this educational black hole because there's nothing in place. They're too bright for a special school, but there is nothing in between."
Trudie Sheath told Isle of Wight Radio why mainstream schooling is unsuitable for her son. "He is not able to cope in large class situations. He is working at curriculum level two, which is age seven - he will be eleven by the time he moves schools. Anton, socially and emotionally is further behind than that. He can't cope with change, whatsoever. You have to word things in a certain way, you have to prepare him for things. And his way of not coping is to run, hide, throw things, and at his worst level, have thoughts of trying to kill himself."
All five parents are concerned about the lack of information over where their children might eventually be placed, and say that there is a black hole on the Isle of Wight for educational support for children with autism. They want the Isle of Wight Council to invest in an entirely separate new unit, to specifically cater for their children's unique needs, possibly using one of the middle schools closed because of the two-tier reorgnisation.
Steve Beynon, Isle of Wight Council Chief Executive said: "The council's policy is to not place in special schools pupils who do not meet the criteria for special school placement. After assessment, it was felt that the needs of these young children did not meet the criteria for placement in a special school.
"St George's School is designated to provide for students with severe and complex needs - in other words, their particular area of expertise lies in assisting pupils of lower academic ability than these pupils.
"Therefore, the assessment based on the information currently available felt these children would be unable to fill their academic potential at St George's and would therefore best be served through mainstream education with an appropriate level of one to one support.
"In order to be sure of the correct placement for these children the council is now commissioning educational psychology assessments for each pupil to firmly establish their current level of needs. Depending on the outcome of the assessments, the council will either look at specialist provision or secure a place in a mainstream school with the necessary one to one support.
"If after assessment a place in a mainstream school is deemed as the best option, we will work with the new 11-19 secondary schools and the parents to provide support to ensure successful integration. The schools re-organisation includes new ways of working to ensure children such as these can be educated inclusively within mainstream schools rather than separating them from their peers.
"Further intensive integration work is planned before September to alleviate worries some parents understandably have, and we continue to talk to parents as their children go through this process."
Report by Emma Philo
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