West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

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tigger2
Posts: 755
Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:35 am

West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by tigger2 »

My dc primary school teacher has advised us to ask around for personal recommendations regarding best schools in our area for our dd. Dd has severe dyslexia and we would be very grateful to hear any views about schools in the West Kent area that offers very good support for dyslexic pupils. She will take the Kent test next year but we are prepared to consider all options .We are going to research as much as possible ,speak to Senco's etc but any personal experiences ,good or bad would be welcomed ! :D

Many thanks!
Tigger
sherry_d
Posts: 2083
Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: Maidstone

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by sherry_d »

Tigger is this for just grammar schools?...and is it just state schools you are interested in?

Could you not try too for the 5 places at B if your DD has special needs or will it be just chasing rainbows?
Impossible is Nothing.
tigger2
Posts: 755
Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:35 am

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by tigger2 »

Hi Sherry !!

Dd's dyslexia has such a huge impact on her life that if we couldn't find a state school with great support we might well have to consider the indie route (I know Bethany is considered very good) If we could get her vr scores up she might score well in the kent test as her nvr scores are excellent. Her teacher said yesterday that the gs tended to offer better support for dyslexia and spcl needs in general-she did say however that personal recommendation was far better than an open day /evening and I have to agree !!

The only view that I have had from a parent with a dyslexic dd is that Hillview has no support at all so I thought I would ask on here :)

As for Bennett she would not qualify for one of the reserved places as she is on the sen register

Many thanks
Tigger
x
Kent99

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by Kent99 »

I'm not aware of any state secondaries in the area which are really good with children with severe dyslexia. Ideally I think such children need a school where the whole teaching methodology/ style has been set up to cater for their way of learning and I don't see how that is going to happen in "mainstream" lessons. For children who just need a bit of extra support I guess schools can do more, although I know of dyslexic children who have struggled at grammar school.

If anyone has any information to the contrary though, I would also be very interested to hear recommendations.

Tigger, Bethany is geared up to support dyslexia and will provide one to one support as necessary (at additional cost). Alternatively, if your daughter's dyslexia is really severe, would you consider Frewen in East Sussex? Maybe boarding Monday to Friday and spending the weekends at home? I've never visited the school so can't compare it with Bethany (which I have visited) but get the impression that unlike at Bethany all the children are dyslexic and/or dyspraxic so the whole school and teaching program is set up accordingly.
Kent99

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by Kent99 »

Should add, about half the pupils at Frewen College are LEA funded, half private.
sherry_d
Posts: 2083
Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: Maidstone

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by sherry_d »

Kent99 wrote: Tigger, Bethany is geared up to support dyslexia
I had that Bethany on my mind too.
Impossible is Nothing.
sp
Posts: 379
Joined: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:09 pm
Location: groombridge, e.sussex

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by sp »

Good friends of ours sent their dyslexic son to Sackville in Hildenborough and he had a very good experience there. Lots of support at the school for various special needs and he came out with good enough GCSEs to move for 6th form to Weald of Kent Grammar.
tigger2
Posts: 755
Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:35 am

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by tigger2 »

Very many thanks for a great response....will investigate Frewen college but would rather she didn't board. Bethany and Sackville are definitely going to be worth looking at.
Does anyone know how the lea funding ,mentioned in an earlier post, works? Someone mentioned this to me ages ago but the lea didnt/wouldnt tell me anything at the time,even denied such a thing existed :? I am assuming that this is a rare event and your dc would need to have a statement (which dd doesn't).

Many thanks again
Tigger
T12ACY
Posts: 800
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 9:12 pm
Location: Kent

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by T12ACY »

Hello!!! I am currently helping put together an appeal for a SEN case where DC is at a state secondary with unit attached which should suit the needs of that child (who has a statement). I also know a large number of people through my work with DC in specialist school's for one reason or another, although mainstream school's out there can be great and as you say word of mouth is the best recommendation.

What I can say is that it is hard enough having a child and getting them the best education possible without the added SEN! It's an absolute minefield but can recommend a charitable organisation off the top of my head which has loads of useful information. I trust that because it's a non profit group I can link, but apologise if not:

http://www.ipsea.org.uk/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This I though was quite interesting:

http://www.ipsea.org.uk/Apps/Content/HTML/?id=244" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It's a case study of a DC with Dyslexia who was not awarded a statement. Also have to say that to get funding is probably around a 27 and a half trillion to 1 chance....

Good luck with your search :D
Money can't buy you happiness, but it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery.
mystery
Posts: 8927
Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2009 10:56 pm

Re: West Kent- which schools offer good dyslexia support?

Post by mystery »

I was going to suggest Sackville in Tonbridge too. I know of someone who went in year 9 and parents wished they had gone there sooner. Only thing to be sure of is what is extra on top of the fees and what is included in the way of dyslexia support.
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