As Okehampton College encourages parents to complete an online Ofsted survey, some have raised concerns that the school is failing to meet their child’s needs.

The Ofsted Parent View survey, a voluntary questionnaire for parents to record their opinion of a school, has revealed that some parents are very unhappy with the provisions available to support children with special educational needs or mental health difficulties and think more should be done to resolve the problem.

Mike Davies said: ‘They do seem to be lacking in this area. Some of the teachers there are brilliant but it seems like the support isn’t there.

‘My concern is the school purports to understand but they show a complete lack of understanding of mental health and other needs. It seems like the focus is all on results and the targets we set.’

In the ongoing survey which had been completed by 358 parents as the Times went to press, 78 per cent disagreed or strongly disagreed that the school was giving children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) the right support.

In a school of over one thousand students, this is a minority but raises questions over whether the school can effectively deal with a range of children of differing needs.

One parent, whose son was struggling with his mental health, said that he had been excluded from school multiple times as a result of poor behaviour brought on by severe anxiety.

She said: ‘When he first started at the school he was an A* student but then lockdown happened and after that his grades just started slipping. I contacted the school and asked why his grades were slipping and was told he was being uncooperative and rude and he kept being excluded.

‘He felt like no one was listening to him and he didn’t want to be there. He was asking for help, but not getting anything and the school made me feel like a bad parent.’

Another parent said that her son also suffered with severe anxiety and had not received proper support.

‘I just feel that the children have been let down,’ she said. ‘My son suffers with anxiety and I was really disappointed with the school’s response. I think they think one cap fits all and that’s not the case. I can’t wait to get my child out of school.’

The survey also revealed that 48 per cent of parents strongly disagree that the school ensures its pupils are well behaved, 55 per cent disagree or strongly disagree that their concerns were dealt with properly and 73 per cent said they would not recommend the school to other parents.

However, Mr Davies and the other parents said there were some ‘fantastic teachers’ at the school and were aware that many staff were under immense pressure as schools try to catch up following the pandemic.

Heather Parkes, who runs the Okehampton Neuro-Diverse Group for parents of children with conditions such as autism, ADHD and Tourette’s, commented that Okehampton College was not the only school to be struggling with such issues.

She said: ‘It’s a national crisis. It’s an old-fashioned education system based on Victorian values. The SENCO at Okehampton College is working her socks off and they are trying their best.’

A spokesperson for the trust said: ‘While we are of course disappointed by these results, we remain proud of the ways in which we engage with the wider Okehampton community and seek to gain the views of parents on a regular basis.

‘This survey – which has been answered by a small proportion of our parents – was sent out proactively by the school as part of our commitment to transparency, and to make sure we are continually receiving feedback which can in turn be actioned and put in place to positively influence how we run as a school.

‘This is a continual process, and we would welcome further discussion with the parents who took part in the survey.’