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I vaguely remember it being discussed before - so maybe you’ll find something in the archives - or through the potato group. My daughter was at a special school and I found that though the staff may not have had all the theoretical knowledge to deal with the range of issues they came across - though they had some of course - it was more an attitude of mind - being open minded to each child’s individual issues and willing to learn and to adapt strategies - it’s definitely worth looking into it further and maybe visiting several times if you can

Hi River, I have recently looked at Blossom House for my AD and I thought it looked fab. Unfortunately no vacancies in my AD's year group but I really wish I had come across it when she was transferring to senior school. My AD is similar to your AS but she has dyslexia as well. She is in a specialist school but not one that specialises in ASD. I have found that as she has got older it is the ASD that causes her more problems than anything else and it makes her so much more vulnerable. So my advice would be to look for a school that specialises in ASD/ADHD as the behavioural symptoms of these are exactly the same as developmental trauma/attachment anyway and so the teachers will be dealing with the behaviour throughout the day in an appropriate manner. Then look for a OT/SaLT/other therapist that specialises in developmental trauma/attachment to work with your AS on a deeper level. You will probably find that the OT/SaLT at Blossom House will have an understanding of developmental trauma/attachment. Blossom House also has post 16 provision which you may find helpful too.

I think it is difficult to find a school that specialises in everything - and indeed the SEMH schools seem to deal with children who's trauma is very severe. So if I were you I would definitely go and visit the school once life returns to normal. xx

Thanks Windfalls and Safia - that's so helpful. Yes we've been told over and over again that it's the ASD/ADHD schools that will cope with adopted children better than SEMH. But the school insist on putting trauma and attachment as his primary need which is annoying to say the least. He is emotional and his reactions are strong so maybe it' s best. I just don't know. However, as well as Blossom House we've also found a school called Richard Challoner just outside Kingston that has a unit and 30 send staff! Deal with ASD and SEMH. So could be good. We'll try to take a look - when the lockdown is over. Have you heard of it?

Thanks again.

I tried to post yesterday but it wasn’t saved for some reason. I don’t know the school but going by the area would recommend you look at Clarendon School where my daughter went - which is Richmond / Hampton area - they also manage a unit in a secondary mainstream school. I have looked at their website recently and the Head and other senior staff are the same - which is a good sign!

Hi River,

I think there has been a post in the dark distant past about Rich Challoner school but I have no knowledge myself about the school. I have just googled it and it looks very religious - my personal preference is to stay well away from these types of school as I don't like the force feed on religion that you get (and i am catholic!) and they also tend to be very high achieving and big schools.

I assume you have an EHCP for your son? What does it say his primary need is? - eg developmental trauma or ASD? My AD's states ASD as her primary need. I am sure that Blossom House will have lots of children there who are adopted, and it may be that the admissions lady just got a bit flustered when you spoke to her. So I would persevere with it a bit more if I were you. Sign up for the open day and book a chat with the Head and discuss your AS's needs then focusing more on his ASD features than attachment/trauma.

I have also had a google of clarendon school which Safia mentioned and it does look very good (12 in a class will be just what your son needs), so go along and have a look at that too. I think there is also an independent school out that way called Heathfield or something - will try and find it and let you know.

Finding the right school can be a bit of a nightmare though and very stressful. xx

Hi River, the school is called Heathermount school and it is in Ascot, Berkshire. I also came across Treetops school whilst looking for Heathermount , and it looks very good so have a look at that as well.

best wishes xx

Sorry it is called Treehouse school and NOT Treetops!!! - it has been a long day especially with all this homeschooling!!!! xx

Hi Windfalls

Thanks for all your info. In the summary of my son's EHCP it states he is adopted and has the usual attachment/trauma related problems as well as ADHD and high functioning Autism. But the lead is about adoption. This is the problem we have as I think the ADHD/Autism should be the primary lead. But we'll see how things pan out soon enough. Yes will look at Clarendon - not sure how much outdoor space there is (he is very sporty) and the others you suggested. Was Treehouse in Ascot? Or london? I will try Blossom House again as he now has a friend there so that would be a good start. Thanks

Thanks Safia

Will check out Clarendon. We looked at Capella House next door but it wasn't that inspiring and zero outside space. Our son loves PE and is sporty as well as a tree climber! Thanks

Hi River,

Treehouse school is based in Muswell Hill, london. If you look on the National Autistic Society website for the branch in your area, they list schools which are either ASD specialist or have children with autism in the school (at least the branch for surrey, where i am, do!).

I can see your problem with your EHCP - the LA seem to have covered all bases with it, which is good in one way but may put schools off as the EHCP may give the impression that his behaviour is very severe hence why you are being pushed towards SEHM schools. I presume that your son was dx with developmental trauma/attachment by someone like CAHMS, first and then the dx for ASD/ADHD came afterwards? If this is the case then if I were you I would tell schools that CAHMS have a tendency to dx adopted children with attachment/trauma and refuse to see that anything else could also be the cause of the behaviour. All children who are adopted have attachment/trauma issues to some extent but they also have a lot of genetic/hereditary conditions/damage to brain development during pregnancy through alcohol/drug missuse as well - after all there are reasons why birth parents lead chaotic lives and are unable to parent properly. Consequently in your son's case, the majority of his behaviour is down to ASD and ADHD. The ADHD I assume is controlled by medication during the day, and his emotions and strong reactions are probably down to his ASD and high anxiety (which tend to go hand in hand). My daughter can have massive tantrums/meltdowns over absolutely no-where and it is down to her ASD and high anxiety. Also, when her ADHD meds are wearing off the symptoms reappear and also if her meds are not at the right strength (eg during growth spurts) then the ADHD features can be present during the day.

So, if I were you, I would play down the developmental trauma/attachment elements and emphasis the ADHD and ASD when speaking with schools and Head teachers.

best wishesxx

Hi Windfalls

We haven't had him assessed by CAMHS for attachment or trauma. The ASD guy said he could see none. It was the school who put it as the opening line in the summary of his EHCP. So no diagnosis of it at all. So yes I agree with you it needs to be played down but not forgotten. I have talked about this with the school but they say that the adopted bit of Summary in section one should stay as opening paragraph of summary. Hopefully the schools will see in his needs that speech & language etc is the largest part of the document. We'll see. It's a steep learning curve for all of us!

I am going to talk to Blossom House again. Thanks for all advice. So helpful

Hi River,

I think I am getting a bit confused over primary lead/primary need. Are you talking about the A3 part of the EHCP which outlines the child's background/story? In my ad's EHCP A3 outlines all of her dx's and also states that she is adopted and how this impacts on her behaviour. It also gives information concerning her birth family history and how she came to be in the care system. It also gives information about us - her adoptive family. However her primary NEED is ASD - the panel who granted her Plan decided that her overriding problem was ASD and therefore her plan was granted on this basis and stated that provision should be in a specialist ASD school (which she isn't but that is another story!!). I honestly think that schools look at this section as just background information and really look at what the plan says is his/her primary NEED as this is what they have to provide for eg one school that i looked at took children who had ASD only if it wasn't listed as their primary need (it's main provision was for dyslexia and so that had to be a child's primary Need in the plan). Some schools which are ASD specialist will only take children who have it listed on their plan as their primary NEED.

I think that you just have to pitch your son's story depending on the school you look at. If you think his main need is ASD then look for schools for high functioning ASD children and emphasis that need and then mention the attachment/trauma and ask if they have an understanding of it, which I am sure they will have as most of the specialist schools have adopted children in them. My ad's school has other adopted children and whilst the teacher's themselves don't have a very good understanding of adoption related stuff - both the Salt and OT staff do, which is good enough for me. The teachers do have an understanding of ADHD and some understanding of ASD - but they are getting better. It is difficult to find a school that has an understanding of everything and so sometimes I think you just need to decide what condition is causing the most problems for your son and make sure the school can deal with that. So I would go with what your gut instinct is telling you is the best for your son.

best wishes xx

Hi again Windfalls

I was talking about Section B/Summary. It's the section that describes all the needs. The summary is the opening bit of Section B. And you are probably right that they just whizz through it but really focus on the bullet point needs below it and the provision they need to provide. So will concentrate on those. Am learning fast!

Really interesting to hear your daughter's journey with the EHCP. I think I have to thing of it as an organic every moving document! Otherwise it's too stressful and nothing fixed in stone just as you say.

Really good advice - thanks.

Morning River,

Sorry to keep banging on about this EHCP stuff - but did you ever receive a copy of the minutes of the panel meeting when the Plan was granted? I did and it outlines all my AD's key areas of need and then under the decision bit it states "Primary Need : ASD and "Provision - a specialist ASD school to meet AD's SEN". My AD's plan itself doesn't spell out what her primary need is so when I send her EHCP to schools I also send a copy of these minutes too. So it may be worth contacting your LA caseworker and getting a copy of these minutes if you don't already have it. It may be that the minutes say your AS's primary need is ASD in which case you needn't worry so much about what section b says. It is all a learning curve though and good luck with your school search - it is all very stressful. xxx

Just to add further, if under the EHCP his primary need is attachment/trauma - then I think you may need to get this changed and I would contact the LA about the best way to go about this. As your son is coming up to a transition stage (moving from primary to secondary) you can apply to have the plan changed during the transition review meeting, but if the school are not prepared to support you with this I would speak to the LA about the best way to do it. I am surprised that as you have no formal dx of attachment/trauma it is in Section B. My ad's section B has no mention of her being adopted and the effect it has on her, this is only is Section A. My LA won't give you anything unless you have a formal dx of it. I think unless you get this changed you will have problems with schools eg for Blossom house the EHCP has to have cognitive/social communication needs as the primary need so they have a high percentage of children with ASD. I think if you leave it the way it is you will find yourself being pushed more towards SEMH schools which may not be the best place for your son. So if you think that his primary need should be ASD contact the LA and put your argument on the basis that the school teachers do not have the professional qualifications necessary to be able to dx attachment/trauma, that as they knew your AS is adopted they have "assumed" that all of his problems are down to attachment/trauma which clearly is not the case as you have had subsequent dx's of ASD and ADHD. Indeed the ASD chap could find no evidence of attachment/trauma - as you mention above. So although attachment/trauma is important as you rightly point out, I would say that it should not be his primary need - indeed you could further argue that as your son gets older it is his ASD that is causing him more problems and thus is the main condition that needs to be addressed by his senior school.

Sorry for all the confusion I have caused above - have two children doing home schooling which is driving me mad and my eldest at home from uni who seems to think I am running a 24 hour restaurant!!!

anyway - I promise this is my last post on this topic !!! best wishes xxx

Hi Windfalls

Thanks so much for filling me in. Am a bit worried now. I agree but his reactions can be quite volatile and i just don't know if that's SEMH or attachment. But you're completely right he's never had a diagnosis and never been asked for one. It was the school who just wrote in the trauma bit. Argh. Will just have to see how things pan out. At least ASD and ADHD are in the summary as well. It's all a minefield. I feel in control and calm one day and then the next feel like I'm jumping into a vortex!

Has he ever been assessed for learning difficulties? My ad was dx ADHD/ODD aged 6 and we put her on meds straight away. However over the next two years she did not make up any ground academically and her behaviour at school continued to be really bad - lots of volatile behaviour and tantrums/meltdowns in class. We then had her assessed by an ed pysch who dx dyslexia when she was aged 8 and we moved her to an independent dyslexia specialist school. Once there, with the small class sizes and very personalised education plans - everything taught at her pace - her behaviour completely calmed down. We then started to see all of her ASD features really come to the fore and she was dx ASD aged 10.

So your son's volatile behaviour could be down to other stuff going on - eg learning difficulties and the fact that he is in the wrong school for his needs. Obviously it could also be down to attachment as you point out. So may be consider having him assessed for learning difficulties as well as attachment. Also consider having him assessed for sensory processing disorders as this could also be making his behaviour volatile. Also have a look at his ADHD meds - the dose may either need adjusting or he may need to be switched to another brand. My ad was on concerta and we kept having to up the dose and her adhd doctor decided to switch her to elvanse and she has been so much better on that. She is also on intuniv (none stimulative adhd meds) and this lasts over a 24 hour period. The intuniv is not as effective as the elvanse at controlling her adhd but it does take the edge off her behaviour before and after the elvanse takes effect.

Trying to get to the bottom of our children's needs is not easy - but do go with your gut instinct - it has never let me down so far!!!

best wishes xxx

Thanks again. Yes once we are Covid clear we will probably do more assessments. Personally I think the ADHD is very prominent. His birth dad was diagnosed aged 5 and his siblings all have it. Am not sure where ASD comes from though could be attachment too. Anyway will plug on. He is calm and happy at the moment which is the main thing. He loves school mostly. The learning is hard for him but we'll hopefully get a good unit in a mainstream or somewhere like Blossom House once primary done. Let's see. Thanks again and keep healthy!

dyslexia can give rise to the same type of behavioural symptoms as ADHD - just something to keep in mind. Let's hope we can all get back to normal soon.

wishing you all the best River xx