Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Hello! i posted before but don't know what happened to it. I am new here and have no experience of CH but have heard very good things about the school. I have a son currently in year 5 at a prep,he is doing fairly well academically but he has ADHD and on meds. Does anyone know wether CH caters for mild SN and to what degree ? are there any children with SN at CH or will this count against his application. He needs a school with strong pastoral care, ive read the CH brochure but they all say they give good care so wanted to get an insider view. Would they be sympathetic to my son who can be quite anxious about speaking in public and in class (although quite loud with his friends and at home) he is quite musical (grade 3 in two instruments) very good at maths and science. Thank you.

I went to Christ's Hospital between 1963 and 1968.

Probably as a result of my father being exposed to radiation, I am not saying where or how he was exposed for obvious legal reasons, I developed Congenital cataract.

I went blind during my time at CH and I can honestly say that CH is the last place i would put a child with special needs

I have recently been diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome after 61 years. I have also achieved a Pas at the International Boatbuilding Training centre, A Credit in Cabinet making at City & Guilds, and a Distinction at Bench Joinery at City & Guilds level, I achieved my first two qualifications being virtually blind in one eye and not much sight in the other

Aspergers has recently been 'subsumed' into the 'Autistic Spectrum' according to the DSM-V the latest move is to treat it with drugs.

Looking back I think CH admitted a lot of Psycho kids,so I am sure they can make room for a few more.

'They' have been sending me letters asking me for money,I might be willing to contribute a small sum if I thought it was going towards a Special Needs Unit, how about 'Jack Hards House' with the 'Squit' Wells Unit, they were two porters and Jack was always having the Hiss taken out of him for his limp,and 'Squit' was mercilessly mocked for being a bit slow.

I found the duplicate post and have deleted it from the other forum.

J.R.

It would depend on a number of factors, including whether you are a potential Day pupil or boarder. I recommend in the first instance, contact the Learning Support Team at the school who would be far better placed to discuss your potential application than anyone else. They can be contacted at the school address.

Westondonkey wrote:I went to Christ's Hospital between 1963 and 1968.

I can honestly say that CH is the last place i would put a child with special needs

CH still occupies the Stammerham Estate at W. Horsham, and the children still wear blue coats (sometimes), but apart from that, the school now has next to nothing in common with the school then. I have no idea what it does for special needs now, but what it did then (and I'm sure you're right) is not a criterion. While there is a continuity, it is the sort of continuity that links me now with me as a baby.

Definitely contact the school and discuss the specific needs.

It's very dangerous to take too much note of Old Blues' experience from previous generations (me included!) - all schools were very different in previous decades, and special needs are far better understood now and catered for.
Given it's primarily a boarding environment it's important that your child feels completely comfortable, and is a good "fit." This is true regardless of special needs or otherwise - so talking to the school and working out whether it would be right is important.

Having spoken to many Old Blues over the years, the school is by different in every generation, moving and changing with the times. It's different from when I was there (1985 to 1992) and I'm sure very different from the 60s too - so do take some posts with a pinch of salt!
CH continues to try to live to it's foundation purpose, but continues to change.....


Julian

Further to my post!!

Being really serious!!

Calmly and quietly and confidentially, put it all down in writing and I think you could well get it right.

There are some very smart people about!

I had a bad time, but 'The map is not the territory' talk to the people who know, and that is not me.

Good luck

I have no direct knowledge regarding how well the school caters for "special needs" pupils. Definitely you should check with the school. However I can confirm that my son has had very good pastoral care in his house, he is a current pupil.

I was recently forced to leave for medical reasons. I have autistic spectrum disorder along with depression and anxiety, which were diagnosed this year and used as the basis for me being asked to leave, right before my GCSEs.I had been actively asking for help for years and the school was not giving it. If your child can handle themselves well and be independent then you are probably okay, but I wouldn't count on CH for help if you don't fight for it.

lisbethvi23 wrote:I was recently forced to leave for medical reasons. I have autistic spectrum disorder along with depression and anxiety, which were diagnosed this year and used as the basis for me being asked to leave, right before my GCSEs.I had been actively asking for help for years and the school was not giving it. If your child can handle themselves well and be independent then you are probably okay, but I wouldn't count on CH for help if you don't fight for it.

Would you care to enlarge on your post, Sarah ??

As I read it that you were originally accepted for the school, joined as a pupil and then was asked to leave. If this is the case, then CH should really allow us to know the reason.

As an Old Blue who left this year, I can honestly say that there's pretty much nothing in place for anyone with special needs or mental illness. Of course, the school tends to turn down most people who apply and have been diagnosed with one, but unfortunately there are naturally people who aren't, and hell, there are even people who I suspect the school itself may have driven over the edge from the absurd amount of pressure and restriction that's developed about the students as time went on. Sure, the teachers are fairly swift at responding to bullying-(when the see it, if they see it), but they simply don't care about how the kids are coping. At all. Frankly, there should be more competence and care from the school towards those in their care.
On a different note: Hallo Sarah! Fancy seeing you here.

As Oli was saying - he was at CH with me and a very good friend. When I was originally accepted to CH I was undiagnosed and the school allowed me in. However, five years down the line, after asking for help from every person I could throughout my school career, they decided that the terms that CAMHS had set for them (which were literally allowing me an appointment time once a week and giving me someone in school to talk to once a week) meant that they could no longer look after me, and they asked me to leave 2 days before the beginning of my GCSE year, which made it near to impossible to find another school. If they had at least said this earlier on when I was asking for help and it was obvious I needed it then it might not have ended up being so detrimental to my education. As it is, I went from being a straight A* student to Bs-Ds all round.

Given the school's timing, I have to say that is rather bad, especially if they didn't offer you any support in finding a place elsewhere.

What I thought was particularly bad was that the school seemed to be exploiting people like Sarah (who really was straight As all around) and is probably driving a lot of people over the edge. They want good grades, so they keep pushing the ones who are capable until they get results, without caring in the slightest about the person themselves. Essentially treating them as a machine, but with less maintenance.

I find it shocking to read of Sarah's experience - but sadly, not altogether surprising. I've heard a number of similar stories in recent years where the interests of individual pupils seem to be given very low priority. The HM has told me himself that CH must operate first and foremost as a business; this hard-nosed approach seems designed to protect the school's own interests above all else - be that the endowment, their reputation or their academic league table results. Pupils whose individual needs are out of line in any way with the 'business model' are unlikely to meet with much sympathy under the current regime.