Quote:
Originally Posted by Chris
The story suggests to me that the problem here was a communication breakdown between the council and the contractor that built the cage, rather than anyone thinking it was an appropriate place to put an autistic pupil.
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Didn't the school give the contractors any brief or guidelines as to what was required or get any plans of what was going to be provided for the money beforehand? Didn't they seek the advice of specialists from the local authority, for example, in terms of what might be suitable for the purpose? If not, why not? Who were these contractors and did anyone bother to check whether they had any knowledge of such things before giving them the job?
The fact that work was apparently completed before anyone noticed it was unacceptable indicates serious failings at all levels. It seems the contractors felt their work was appropriate and that staggers me frankly, unless of course their impression was that they were building a pen for a very large rabbit. The fact that it got so far before the alarm bells started ringing suggests to me that those responsible for the welfare of this pupil took their eyes off the ball. A communication breakdown is one thing but this smacks of a systemic failure.
Anyone working within SEN knows that a great deal of attention needs to be given to the fine detail and that was the point I was making with regard to special schools which are far better organised and equipped to provide for those with severe SEN. As I've said I'm sure the project was well intentioned but to me it reveals a staggering lack of professionalism and oversight on the part of those involved in the process.
---------- Post added at 12:00 ---------- Previous post was at 11:48 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Taf
The policy of moving disabled children into mainstream schools to "integrate" had good sides and very bad sides. As a parent of disabled twins who have just left secondary school, I know this all too well. Some handicaps require a lot of one-on-one attention which seems to vanish within weeks in many schools I visited.
And it's all down to budgets.
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You're quite right in many cases I'm afraid. There's no doubt that integration is right for some, perhaps the majority of SEN children, but to imply that it's a panacea which makes special schools obsolete, as some proponents of it do, is rubbish as born out by your personal experience.