'Autistic children are being failed. My son is traumatised by his experience at school'

A DAD has accused Conwy Council and the Welsh Government of failing autistic pupils, claiming vulnerable children and teenagers are being left without a good enough education across the county.

- Richard Evans

Chris Bryant claims his 16-year-old son, who attends the Pontio unit for autistic children at Ysgol Aberconwy in Conwy, has faced repeated bullying and assaults on school buses.

Chris, 53, and his wife Sarah have four children, aged five, 10, 14 and 16, and live in Old Colwyn after moving from London. Chris' oldest child has been diagnosed with both autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) but is academically able.

Ysgol Aberconwy provides the main provision for autism in Conwy county, with its Pontio and Tegfan units, although Ysgol Gogarth in Llandudno also provides education for children with even greater needs.

But Chris said Conwy Council initially refused to provide dedicated school transport from Old Colwyn to the Conwy school for Chris' son, who wants to return for his A-levels in September.

Chris says the family had to fight Conwy Council before it agreed to provide school transport, as Welsh Government legislation only requires councils to provide this up to age 16 - unlike in England, where it continues until 18.

Conwy Council says it funds a relatively wide and extensive range of Additional Learning Provision, and said Ysgol Aberconwy works extremely hard to meet the needs of all students.

The Welsh Government said they have significantly increased investment to support children with additional learning needs.

Chris said he believed education specialists should set quantifiable goals that are “specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and targeted” in an autistic child's individual development plan so their needs can be met, which he claims hasn't happened in the case of his son.

“You never get that with the council. They don’t say, for instance, the child will have 20 hours of one-to-one care at school, or they will be taken to the Pontio unit if they are having a meltdown or if the child asks, which can be measured,” said Chris.