[senco-forum] Special school placement

Help please! I am an infant school Senco. We have a child with complex needs

On 01/02/07 14:54, "Tara Riddle" <tjr29 at hotmail.com> wrote:
<snipped>
> Help please! I am an infant school Senco. We have a child with complex needs
> who is due to transfer to KS2 in September. Our local junior school would be
> highly inappropriate for him.
> After careful discussion at his annual review in May 2006, his parents
> agreed to consider an MLD school. I took them to visit 2 such schools,
> equi-distant from home - they disliked one, and loved the second. They named
> the second on their parental response form for transition.
> The LEA have decided that he cannot have a place at their preferred school,
> but could go to the one they dislike. They are pretty angry.
> An LEA official have told the parents that there is no point going to a
> tribunal, as the LEA has offered them a MLD place -"it does not count that
> their preference is the other school. They've been offered an MLD place to
> meet his needs."
They may think that, but I understand that LEAs have to name the parents
preferred school in the statement unless one or more of the 'three caveats'
apply. (Briefly: can't meet their needs; presence interferes with education
of others; not efficient use of resources.) What you report the official as
saying doesn't sound to me like any of those reasons.
> Another piece of advice they received - from Parent Partnership - was that
> if we held an immediate 'annual' review, they could request their preferred
> school be named on the Statement, and then the LEA would have to comply.
As I understand it, LEAs are not under obliged to comply with advice offered
by any review meeting, annual or otherwise. Hmm.
> I have spoken to an independent SEN support group, who advised that the LEA
> official is wrong - parents CAN specify the name of a Special School. Also
> that an amended Statement can not change from mainstream to special without
> LEA agreement.
> Please can anyone advise me on what rights the parents have? What can I do
> next to help them?
If the parents have actually received a finalised statement recently, appeal
to the Tribunal may be possible, I understand.

Suggest to them that they consider seeking advice as soon as possible, from
the likes of IPSEA or ACE (contact details follow).

The advice line of the Independent Panel for Special Education Advice
(IPSEA) can be contacted  on 0800 018 4016.
Their usual advice line hours are Mon-Thu 10-4 & 7-9 and Fri 10-4.

The IPSEA website is at <www.ipsea.org.uk>

The Advisory Centre for Education (ACE) has a general advice line:
FREEPHONE 0808 800 5793.

ACE web-site <http://www.ace-ed.org.uk>

Regards, Mike
(parent & parent advisor)
-- 
Mike Boyd <mike at green43.demon.co.uk>