MY OPINIONS

 

 

Special needs

 

Children with special needs are better off being educated in special needs schools because if a child had Dyslexia for example and he or she was in a Mainstream school and was asked to read what’s on the board and they can’t, the teachers would think he or she was being lazy where as if they were in a special needs school then the teachers would understand.

 

 

Tourettes

 

Tourette De France

 

I’ve got a DVD of a documentary called “Tourette De France”. It’s about a group of Scottish teenagers who have Tourettes and the group is lead by a man with Tourettes named John Davidson who appeared in the 1989 documentary “John’s Not Mad” (which I don’t mind not having). In “Tourette De France”, the group were offered permission to visit the hospital in Paris where Tourettes was first diagnosed.

 

Keith Allen came with them on this trip and on their way they stopped for lunch in Canterbury and Keith asked one boy named “Callum Davidson” what form of Tourettes he had and he explained to him that he had quite a bad case of OCD and Keith asked him how it came out and Callum explained to him that at home he was really fussy with foods and that he could only eat certain foods if they’re on certain plates, bowls only if they’re cooked by certain people in a certain way. Keith asked him about eating at school and Callum said that sometimes he never really ate at school.

 

Then they went inside Canterbury cathedral and the group leader John explained to him that for him to sit and talk to him, he needed to be able to trust him and that he needed to trust his friends and family and that they wanted to show people that there were sides and elements of the condition that maybe other TV companies wouldn’t. Especially the thing about Asperger syndrome and the autism link because there are huge scientific links between OCD, ADHD, Tourettes, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Asperger syndrome and the autism link. Information is over crowding the brain and that the brain doesn’t want to do it so it ends up scrambled and then you get these bizarre behaviours to deal with what’s going on inside.

 

Keith later explained to him on the ferry that it was quite interesting where they were going and that the French had only just recognised Tourettes as neurological and that the implication was that it’s always been psychological and that he was able to control it or it was his fault or if it was neurological than he was kind of admitting that it wasn’t his fault because he was incapable of controlling it. John said that he was absolutely correct and he said that they know when it’s Tourettes and they know when it’s not and that he needed to be aware of that and that’s what he encourages and that he encourages a child if he’s suppressing a tick, try not to suppress it and let it come out because people would understand and that they should put a T-shirt on a child saying “This child has Tourettes”.

 

When they were in France in an outer city Leisure park and after the rafting another boy named “David Irving” explained to Keith that if he was walking through a park at night he always thought the worst of things like he could see a TV in his head and a newsflash saying, “Young boy killed in a park”, and he was thinking it was actually going to happen and that he gets all worked up about it. Keith asked him if he was in situations at school where he was in line for dinner and he was desperate not to tick and David explained to him that he could hold it in but he learned not to do it anymore because when he gets out of the queue it could be a big massive outburst like hundreds of swear words all at once.

 

Meanwhile the Bus driver Dixon was telling John about his own experiences with Tourettes and John explained to him that with the vocalisations, they’re not racist, they’re not perverts or anything and he worries in case he shouts, “BLACK MAN!” but he doesn’t want to but he worries in case it does so it makes him do it.

 

Another boy named ‘Ryan Miller’ explained to Keith that he was a brilliant footballer but incredibly he’s been sent off twice for ticking. He said that he swore during the match and the referee didn't quite understand but he hadn’t been told and that’s because he wasn’t diagnosed with the condition at the time but he was the second time. Keith then asked him if the people at school knew that he had Tourettes and Ryan said that they kind of did but they never seen him tick like that before because he suppressed it and that because he’s around with people with Tourettes he’s just letting it all out. Then Keith said “What you just hold it all in at school?” and Ryan said that he goes into his room and lets it all out.

 

I’m not saying everyone should buy the DVD but it’s highly recommended for those who don’t understand much about Tourettes.

 

 

I swear, I can’t help it

 

There was another documentary about Tourettes that was transmitted on 28th May 2009, two days before my 22nd birthday and it featured John Davidson saying that sometimes his brain is telling him that somebody’s staring at him and somebody’s watching him and somebody’s drove past and laughed.

 

He’s now an active member of the charity, Tourette Scotland which apparently didn’t exist until 1994. He organises weekend get together’s so that children and adults with Tourettes can share their experiences. He works at his own community centre and he says that he feels safe and comfortable there. I could be wrong but think there should be community centres like that everywhere for children and adults with Tourettes when enough people hear of it eventually.

 

 

Aspergers Syndrome

 

I was absolutely appalled to discover that there were autistic children being educated in Mainstream schools and not getting the support they need for them to reach their full potential and that there were ex-pupils who have had the exact same experience.

 

I used to say that autistic children should only be educated in Autism schools because of the high risk of them being badly bullied there or excluded from there. In June 2006 I wrote a letter to my local MP about my concerns of that and soon after, I got a reply back from schools Minister Lord Adonis and even though it’s been on the News, I think it should be on the News more often but at the end of the day it’s up to them what they put on it. In March 2008 I wrote to him again and some of it was old but most of it was new.

 

 

Derek’s letter to Bob Russell

 

Dear Bob Russell

 

I just like to say thank you very much for the letter you sent me and the letter that you sent to my Mum. I thought I’d write to you again even though I know I’ve written to you before and I know I’ve mentioned some of this to you before but this is what I want to say.

 

I really do think that every autistic child should only be educated in Autism schools when there are enough of those in the UK and that’s what I demand. And it’s because every autistic child who is being educated in a Mainstream school is at high risk of being badly bullied there or excluded where as in an Autism school there is none of that I suppose and if there weren’t any places left for them then they can be taught at home till there were places for them. I mean they can have the choice but that’s how I feel about the whole thing.

 

I am angry to discover that they’ve been forcing autistic children into Mainstream and if they haven’t stopped closing special schools yet then they need to stop it happening as soon as they possibly can and pretty quickly. And I could be wrong but some of them that have closed down should be reopened as Autism schools.

 

I am absolutely appalled to discover that there are autistic children being educated in Mainstream schools and not getting the support they need to reach their full potential and that there are ex-pupils who have had the exact same experience.

 

It’s the kind of thing that needs to be discussed more on the News, Question time, This Week and Newsnight. I don’t see it being discussed enough on television.

 

Every autistic child needs to be diagnosed at a young age before they are to start school.

 

I’ve recently seen something on the News called City College* for adults with autism and I felt quite pleased that they’ve opened up something like that but at the same time I’m feeling depressed because it’s in Norwich and it’s a shame I don’t live there because I want to go to somewhere like that. There needs to be colleges like that everywhere in the UK especially in Essex and if there was one in Essex and that I would be able to go there my life would be more social.

 

Yours Sincerely

 

Derek Rogers

 

 

* I now realise that it is a unit at City College and not the whole College.

 

 

Bob Russell’s response

 

Just two days later I received a response from him and it was an excellent response. He contacted me again when he received a response and he sent it to me but it was quite complicated for me to understand and I wouldn’t be surprised if anyone wouldn’t fully understand this.

 

Dear Bob

 

I am replying as the Minister with responsibility for this policy area.

 

I should explain that the Government is firmly committed to the principle of inclusion and an increasing proportion of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) attend mainstream schools. Inclusion is much more than the types of schools children attend; it is about the quality of their experience and how far they are helped to learn, achieve and participate fully in the life of the school. The Government is committed to developing an education service, which ensures that all children (including those with SEN and disabilities) have the opportunity to reach their full potential. As a result, we are making available to all local authorities in England significant sums to help assist them in their statutory duties to provide for children’s SEN.

 

We have always said that where parents want a mainstream place for their child, everything possible should be done to provide that. We have also said that there should be a range of high quality provision for pupils for whom mainstream education may not be right or what their parents want for them.

 

Local Authorities (LAs) are under a duty in the Education Act of 1996 to secure sufficient schools for pupils in their area and in doing so must have particular regard to the need for special educational provision. There must be strong links between special schools and neighbouring mainstream schools. Pupils in special schools should have opportunities to mix with their peers, and friends, in mainstream schools. This type of partnership working is a key aspect of the Government’s published strategy on SEN. The Ministers have no powers to intervene in relation to school reorganisations or closures. Schools organisation is a matter for local determination, in accordance with statutory provisions and guidance. This guidance makes good the Government’s pledge to ensure that when they propose changes to arrangements for children with special educational needs – including proposals to close special schools/units – LAs show how they will lead to improve provision.

 

Your constituent may be interested to know, that when considering the reorganisation of their special educational needs (SEN) provision, statutory guidance for LAs includes Planning and Developing Special Educational Provision: A Guide for Local Authorities and other Proposers.

 

It also encourages LAs to show the specific educational benefits that will flow from the proposals in terms of:

 

·    Improved access to education and associated services including the curriculum, wider school activities, facilities and equipment, with reference to the LAs Accessibility Strategy;

·  Improved access to specialist staff, both education and other professionals, including any external support and/or outreach services;

·           Improved access to suitable accommodation;

·           Improved supply of suitable places and;

·          To develop a range of provision including mainstream schools, special schools, specially resourced provision in or attached to mainstream schools and collocated mainstream and special schools.

 

We have made clear in our national strategy for SEN, Removing Barriers to Achievement, that special schools have a vital role in educating children with the most severe and complex needs and working much more closely with mainstream schools to share expertise and extend the range of opportunities for learning for all children in all settings.

 

In practice, over the past 20 years, LAs have reconfigured their special schools to meet changing needs, developed specialist provision within or attached to mainstream schools and co-located special and mainstream schools. The Building Schools for the Future BSF capital programme offers real opportunities to develop new and better provision for children with SEN and disabilities and extend a range of choices open to parents. The programme is currently worth over £2 billion a year in the spending review period 2005-08; of that, some £300 million is estimated to be spent on provision for pupils with special needs and disabilities in the first three waves of the programme.

 

Yours ever

 

Andrew Adonis

 

So the news seems to be good enough.