ABSTRACT

It has been estimated that as many as 1% of school-age children in England and Wales have severe ADHD. In addition, as many as 5% experience symptoms which fulfil the criteria for ADHD as defined by ICD-10 (NICE 2008). This equates to around 69,000 children in England being severely affected, and approximately 345,000 mildly to moderately affected (Hill 2005). The symptoms of hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention frequently manifest

as overt behaviours which are disruptive in the classroom and school environment (DuPaul and Eckert 1997a). Almost two-thirds of children with hyperkinetic disorder are behind in their overall scholastic ability, and almost three-quarters have officially recognised special educational needs (Green et al. 2005). Population studies show that children with ADHD are more likely to be ‘school refusers’, or to have been absent from school for long periods at a time than other children (Green et al. 2005). The oppositional behaviour of between one-quarter and one-third of children and young people with ADHD will lead to their exclusion from school (Tannock 1999; Green et al. 2005; Barbaresi et al. 2007).