Families are choosing independent special assistance schools as an alternative to mainstream classrooms.
Students describe having endured bullying or exclusion before making the change.
Groups that run flexible, independent schools say funding must keep up with demand.
For 16-year-old Joshua Houston, going to school used to mean wondering what might go wrong that day.
The Sunshine Coast teenager, who has Tourette syndrome, said he experienced bullying and disciplinary action at his former mainstream school.
"It felt like I was not heard and I felt like I was disrespected and no-one would really listen to me," he said.
Now attending Kairos Community College in Nambour on the Sunshine Coast, Joshua says school has become somewhere he belongs.
"It feels like I've finally gotten to a point where I'm heard and that makes life even easier," he said.
"It feels like I've completed something in my life basically. And I've got a very good group of friends."
His experience comes as new research reveals enrolments at Queensland's independent special assistance schools have increased sevenfold since 2016, with more than 11,000 students attending schools in 2025.
The report, commissioned by Independent Schools Queensland (ISQ) and conducted by research firm McCrindle, also found principals were reporting extensive waiting lists.
Joshua's mother, Alicia Kerkow, said her son's Tourette syndrome was not always understood in mainstream…
