{"id":197320,"date":"2026-08-03T09:57:42","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T08:57:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/?page_id=197320"},"modified":"2026-08-04T10:59:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T09:59:30","slug":"support-from-schools","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/bucks\/neurodiversity\/support-from-schools\/","title":{"rendered":"Support From Schools"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Many schools have a lot of experience supporting neurodivergent learners, including those that have ADHD and Autism. Creating a neurodivergent-friendly classroom is about fostering an environment where all learners feel valued and supported. Everyone has different styles of learning and ways of thinking, so it\u2019s important to recognise and embrace this. It benefits everyone, including neurotypical students, when classrooms are designed with neurodiversity being considered as this enhances the flexibility and engagement of all students.<\/p>\n<h2>SEN Support Guidance<\/h2>\n<p>Using SEN support guidance and code of practice, schools are equipped with tools to create an inclusive learning environment. These resources help educators understand each child\u2019s unique profile, adapt the curriculum to suit diverse needs and implement strategies that foster engagement and success.<\/p>\n<p>Buckinghamshire has its own structure of SEN support guidance, which outlines approaches for supporting a wide range of neurodivergent learners and those with other educational needs.<\/p>\n<h2>Autism and ADHD and Special Educational Needs (SEN)<\/h2>\n<p>Autism and ADHD are both classed as Special Educational Needs (SEN)which means schools, colleges and employers have a duty of care to make \u2018reasonable adjustments\u2019 to ensure accessibility, even without a diagnosis. These adjustments will vary depending on the individual and the context, but they should be guided by collaboration, respect and a commitment to inclusion. However, educational settings have a duty of care to make adjustments even before a diagnosis and students do not need a formal diagnosis for schools to put specialist support in place.<\/p>\n<h2>Guidance and Support<\/h2>\n<p>If you require further information and guidance regarding your child\u2019s rights before diagnosis, please follow these links:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/schoolsweb.buckinghamshire.gov.uk\/send-and-inclusion\/send-support-and-graduated-approach\/ordinarily-available-provision\/\">Ordinarily Available Provision<\/a> outlines the provision that the local authority expects to be made available for all Early Years children and children with special educational needs and or disabilities. The Buckinghamshire SEND Team is currently collaborating with a wide range of stakeholders to update the 2019 Ordinarily Available Provision (OAP) guidance.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25\">SEND code of practice<\/a> offers guidance explaining how children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities should be supported in schools. This should be used by schools to help assess and meet the needs of neurodiverse children.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/schoolsweb.buckinghamshire.gov.uk\/send-and-inclusion\/send-service\/send-support-line\/\">SEND Support Line<\/a>\u00a0was developed to make it easier for schools, families, and professionals to contact the Buckinghamshire Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) team. This service is open to everyone seeking advice and support about SEND.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While we can offer guidance (such as on <a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/bucks\/neurodiversity\/ehcps\/\">EHCPs<\/a>) and help you understand what support your child is entitled to and what your rights are, we don\u2019t hold the responsibility of ensuring the schools are implementing these adjustments- but we can support you advocating for your child.<\/p>\n<h2>Approaching a conversation with schools regarding reasonable adjustments<\/h2>\n<h3>Understanding Your Childs Need<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Read through the diagnostic report and any other professional reports that may be relevant (EHCP, Educational psychologist report etc)<\/li>\n<li>If you are still waiting for a diagnosis, you could consider what needs are not being met at school yet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Learn about your rights<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Familiarise yourself with the Equality Act 2010, review the SEND Code of Practice and the schools SEN policy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Request a meeting<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Contact the schools SENCO or headteacher and ask for a formal meeting to discuss your child&#8217;s needs and adjustments<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Prepare for the meeting<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8211; Bring documents and a list of specific adjustments you are seeking.<\/li>\n<li>&#8211; Ensure you are able to explain your adjustments.<\/li>\n<li>&#8211; You can also take a trusted advocate with you.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Have a conversation<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Stay calm and collaborative<\/li>\n<li>Ensure the focus is on your child&#8217;s wellbeing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Agree on actions:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Request that the agreements are documented in an Individual Support Plan or added to your child&#8217;s EHCP, if they have one.<\/li>\n<li>Ask for timelines and clarify who will be responsible for implementing each adjustment. &#8211; Clarify how progress with be monitored<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Follow up<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Check in regularly with the school to see which adjustments are working.<\/li>\n<li>If the adjustments are not working consider setting up another meeting to discuss how this can be changed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Reasonable adjustments<\/h2>\n<p>There are a range of ways in which schools can support neurodivergent students. However, there are no one-size-fits-all solutions, so although we can offer tools that can support your child\u2019s journey, we are unable to tell you exactly what will help as each child has unique needs.<\/p>\n<h3>Examples of adjustments<\/h3>\n<p>It is important to collaborate with schools and have conversations about the needs of your child and acknowledge that these may shift overtime. The school\u2019s role is to listen, learn and adjust their support to work with you to create an environment where every child can thrive. The examples below may be applicable to your child\u2019s needs but remember that the adjustments made by schools may not be limited to these.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000\">Consider sensory needs<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Allowing movement<\/li>\n<li>Providing regulation areas<\/li>\n<li>Utilising EHCPS<\/li>\n<li>Visual timetables<\/li>\n<li>Providing checklists<\/li>\n<li>Classroom break passes<\/li>\n<li>Clear and concise instructions<\/li>\n<li>Provide visuals for visual learners<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Targeted Interventions<\/h3>\n<p>Many schools often use targeted interventions such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Zones of regulation<\/li>\n<li>Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA)<\/li>\n<li>Lego therapy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These interventions support children who are emotionally dysregulated to help them build their self-regulation and emotional resilience. Check with your child\u2019s school to see if these interventions are available. Not all schools offer them, but many do especially as part of their Ordinarily Available Provision or SEN support.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How do I help? School Refusal\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-Hz0DDNTaTI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Further Support<\/h3>\n<p>If you feel that your, or your child\u2019s needs are not being met or understood, you have the right to seek support.\u00a0 You may find it useful to contact <a href=\"https:\/\/www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk\/schools-libraries-and-parks\/bucks-sendias-service\/\">Bucks SENDIAS service<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ipsea.org.uk\/\">(IPSEA)<\/a> who offer free, confidential and impartial advice on supporting those with SEN or disabilities. They can help you:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>understand your rights<\/li>\n<li>prepare for meetings with the school or local authority<\/li>\n<li>navigate EHCP processes and appeals<\/li>\n<li>advocate for reasonable adjustments and support plans<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>School Governors<\/h3>\n<p>You can also contact your child\u2019s school governors as they have the role of ensuring the school is meeting its legal duties, including those related to SEND. You can raise concerns with them if you feel adjustments aren\u2019t being made or policies aren\u2019t being followed.<\/p>\n<h2>Other Resources<\/h2>\n<p>The following resources provide additional information and guidance you may find helpful:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mindmate.org.uk\/neurodiversity-information-hub\/education\/top-tips-for-supporting-neurodivergent-students\/\">Top tips for supporting neurodivergent students<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/adhdandautism.org\/information\/reasonable-adjustments\/\">Reasonable Adjustments for Neurodivergent Children<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.autism.org.uk\/advice-and-guidance\/education\/difficulties-break-times\/parents\">Lunchtime and break guidance for parents and carers of autistic children<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/familyinfo.buckinghamshire.gov.uk\/send\/education-and-send\/moving-between-stages-education\/\">SEND and moving between stages of education<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.autism.org.uk\/advice-and-guidance\/education\/homework\/parents\">Homework guidance for parents and carers of autistic children<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.autism.org.uk\/advice-and-guidance\/education\/homework\/teachers\">Homework guidance for Teachers working with autistic children<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.autism.org.uk\/advice-and-guidance\/education\/exclusions\/exclusion-england\">Exclusions in England<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/oxon\/ndc\/ndc-education-support\/\">Education Support<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many schools have a lot of experience supporting neurodivergent learners, including those that have ADHD and Autism. Creating a neurodivergent-friendly classroom is about fostering an environment where all learners feel valued and supported. Everyone has different styles of learning and ways of thinking, so it\u2019s important to recognise and embrace this. It benefits everyone, including [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":627,"featured_media":0,"parent":197303,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-197320","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/627"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=197320"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197320\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197388,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197320\/revisions\/197388"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/197303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oxfordhealth.nhs.uk\/camhs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=197320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}