Boy made to wear high-vis vest to show he’s autistic
Mum says school ‘singled out’ son
‘It’s massive discrimination’
A BOY with autism was made to wear a fluorescent jacket in the playground so he stood out from other children.
Charlie Logan, six, told his mother Joanne he had been asked to wear the jacket at breaktimes to enable staff to keep an eye on him.
Mrs Logan, 42, yesterday condemned the school’s decision as ‘disgusting’. ‘It’s just not right – it’s massive discrimination,’ she said.
‘It is not acceptable to be standing out from the other children regardless of whether you’ve got autism or not, nobody should be singled out.’
The Year One pupil at Cherry Lane Primary School in West Drayton, London, came home last week and mentioned wearing the high-vis jacket at breaktime.
Mrs Logan, a divorced single mother of five, said: ‘He said, “My teachers said I have to wear a bib so they know where I am at breaktimes”.’
She said she had not had any specific discussion with the school about the arrangement, although she accepted that the class teacher might have mentioned something about high-vis clothing.
Mrs Logan said: ‘As far as I know he’s only been made to wear it once. They tried to put it on him the day after but I told him that by no means does he wear it.
‘They are saying that any child who needs additional assistance in the playground needs to wear one.
‘I don’t think he needs additional help in the playground, I think he needs more of a one-to-one. He’s the only one in the playground wearing it at breaktimes... Teachers already know that Charlie is autistic so why would they need to light him up?’
She said staff were ‘fully aware’ of Charlie’s condition – it was diagnosed last year by a doctor from a child development centre who visited the school.
He has ‘sensory issues’ and is kept away from most other children at lunch times when the playground is chaotic.
Mrs Logan said there had been complaints about Charlie acting in a violent manner and hurting other children.
But she is angry at the way the school has handled her son. She said: ‘They seem to think the best way to deal with it is to make him wear a bib so that teachers know that he is autistic.’
Mrs Logan has discussed the problem with headmaster Steve Whitehouse and it was decided Charlie would not wear the jacket again.
She has kept him off school for two days and is not sure what the next step will be.
Her other sons – Brendan, 18, Leighton, 16, and 12-yearold TJ – have all been diagnosed on the autistic spectrum and she took legal action to force Hillingdon Borough Council to put them on an educational support plan. She also has a daughter, 20-year-old Marina. Mrs Logan said: ‘I’ve had to fight for all of them. It’s been a nightmare. I shouldn’t have to fight like this constantly.’
A Cherry Lane Primary spokesman said: ‘Decisions made concerning the welfare of all Cherry Lane pupils are done so on an individual needs basis.
‘We always have their safety at the forefront of our practice to ensure that some vulnerable children are constantly supported. Visibility tabards are used for a variety of reasons in our playground.
‘Parents are always consulted prior to actions taken regarding the individual needs of their children.’