Brighton mum organises alternative prom at Pryzm for schoolchildren

Ruth Cover’s son Harry finished Year 11 last month and was hoping to attend prom with all his friends from Dorothy Stringer school in Brighton.

But his mum said the school’s “points system” means he and other children have been left out of celebrating with their peers.

Ruth Cover is organising an alternative prom for her son Harry and other schoolchildren who aren't allowed to go to Dorothy Stringer's prom (Image: Ruth Cover)

Dorothy Stringer pupils are assigned a score based on their "attitude to learning" - a new scheme which rates students on a number of metrics from resilience to enthusiasm.

Students all started the year with a number of "prom points", but if they lost too many over the year then they are were not allowed to attend prom, 44-year-old Ruth said.

She has organised a prom for children who cannot go to the school’s celebrations at Pangdean Old Barn. Instead, her 16-year-old son and his friends will be at Pryzm in West Street.

Dorothy Stringer pupils start the year with a number of 'prom points'

READ MORE: Mum slams school as children 'up in arms' over end of year celebrations

Ruth said the school’s policy is “highly unfair” to children with special educational needs (SEN), like Harry who has autism and ADHD.

“There is a real lack of consideration for children with additional needs whatever that might be," she said.

“All of the children should be included. All of the children have worked their personal hardest this year and to exclude them dismisses their effort.

“The points system is not fit for purpose, not everybody fits into the same box."

Harry and his friends will be celebrating finishing school at Pryzm (Image: Ruth Cover)

She said points are deducted for a number of reasons, including when children do not get to lessons on time, do not have the right equipment or are not wearing the correct uniform.

“These are things that neurodiverse children find extremely hard,” said Ruth.

“My son finds the school jumper rubs and irritates him. He has to go out of the classroom when he is overstimulated.”

Ruth has organised the prom and with the help of other parents they have at least 50 children attending, from 6pm on Monday.

She said it has been a team effort and local businesses including Cloud9 cakes, Knight Life Events and others have helped create the event.

Moss Bros even lent the boys suits for the night free of charge.

Harry and his friends getting suited and booted for their alternative prom (Image: Ruth Cover)

 A spokeswoman from Dorothy Stringer school said: “The prom is an end-of-year school celebration and an earned reward trip that recognises the effort, attendance and resilience of the students.

“The event is run by volunteers and around 60 per cent of the year group usually wish to attend. The process for allocating places is exactly the same as it has been for many years. Each year, it has been wholly inclusive in ensuring that the diversity of the student cohort is fully represented.

“All our students start Year 11 with the same number of ‘prom points’ and all initially qualify for the trip because we want everyone to have the opportunity to attend. Additionally, individual plans were put in place to support students which outlined what they needed to do to ensure they qualified for the trip.

“No student misses out through no fault of their own, and extreme care is taken to ensure that those with particular needs are prioritised. In addition, support with the cost of attending is given to students who are most in need through our financial support officer.

“We have invested a huge amount of time, energy and effort in supporting all our Year 11 students, especially those with special educational needs. We have rules in place, and we have to be fair to all the students who worked hard to qualify for a place as well as those who did not.”