Consultation over Bromley Council school expansion plan to increase places for ASD children (From News Shopper)

Riverside is a very good school but after the last expansion which saw the number of students almost double it's now very short if much needed outside space. Futhermore, access at opening/closing times is frankly a protracted nightmare with children having to wait on their buses for quite long periods before they can enter/leave the site. You can't keep adding children to a site this size in this location without something giving and even if the council is going to provide more staff and classrooms, the quality of the provision will inevitably suffer.
Given the level of need Bromley is facing, one wonders how they ever considered closing the provision currently being used as Riverside's Beckenham site. Given that these children are going to grow into adults, one also wonders what Bromley's doing to provide for their needs after leaving Riverside. Nash College is already heaviliy oversubcribed years ahead and Bromley College is not a suitable evironment for many of the students. Time for some really joined up thinking and practice methinks...

Well said Slonik. What happens when these children become adults? Bromley is failing the adults who through no fault of their own cannot fit into the services being provided by the adult social services, even though it was promised that ALL people would be able to access their 'out in the community' services.

Bromley is long on rhetoric but short on action.

Both the previous comments are totally correct. Bromley's shortsighted policy to those with disabilities has been, for a long time now, to close down facilities first and then wonder how to accomodate people after. Usually the results are based on cost rather than any benefit to those concerned. Its as though the council sees these people as a nuisance rather than as an obligation.

Ken Kivingstone you have it spot on when you say Bromley see these people as a nuisance.

Bromley has consistently broken every promise they made to people with learning disabilities and their carers when the new services were being implemented ten years ago under the umbrella of a White Paper called 'Valuing People' Quote from Bromley Day Service News from 2003 'One of our main principles was that people with complex needs would be included in every part of the new day service. Each individuals programme of activity will be based as now, on assessed need and choice.' Later in 2004 the Assistant Director of social services was saying in the Bromley Borough News 'One of the key factors of the new service is that it is being designed not only on a smaller scale, but also so that ALL clients can access all parts of it including people with more complex needs'. Those two statements turned out to be nothing but rhetoric and the more shameful because it was aimed at people who have no way of challenging them. Scroll down to now and the messages coming out of Social Services is 'I am sorry that there have been difficulties in arranging day activities for BLANK and acknowledge that it is often more difficult for people with complex needs including mobility problems to participate in ALL activities. A complete U-turn on the promises made when the changes were being implemented.

Bromley are really good at photo opportunities aimed at showing the public how well they are looking after people with learning disibilities but there are many many people with LD in this Borough who are getting a raw deal. They like to keep them well hidden.