'My son is being denied a specialist school place'

The mother of a boy who is autistic and has ADHD has said her family has been "failed and ignored" after he was denied a specialist school place.

Lauren's seven-year-old son Austin has been unable to attend a full day at school in about two years.

She had secured an education, health and care plan (EHCP), which states that mainstream schools would be unable to meet his needs, while living in Wiltshire and hoped to secure a specialist school place for him.

However, after losing her job, Lauren decided to relocate to Coalville in Leicestershire to be closer to family in December 2024 and was told the EHCP would move with them.

She said she spent months "begging for an update" as Austin became increasingly anxious and eventually received an email from Leicestershire County Council informing her he had been given a place at a mainstream school.

Lauren said she later learnt the authority had taken the EHCP to a panel, which it told the BBC was made up of qualified professionals, without informing her.

An EHCP is for children and young people up to the age of 25 who need more support than is available through the usual special educational needs support.

Lauren, 28, said the plan she had previously signed had been "edited without her consent or knowledge".

She has appealed against the decision, claiming the school would not be able to meet his needs, and is preparing for tribunal proceedings.

In the meantime, she is keeping Austin at home and trying to educate him but admits he is "so far behind".

"He's not officially home-schooled, but I'm doing everything I can," she added.

"I thought him having the EHCP would fix the problems. It didn't."

Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) regulations state that a new local authority receiving a transferred EHCP - in this case Leicestershire County Council - can bring forward the arrangements for the review of the plan.

It can also conduct a new education, health and care needs assessment, regardless of when the previous assessment took place at the previous authority.

Lauren says she feels "hugely and continuously" failed by the system and the situation has taken its toll on her family.

"It's difficult. It's a lot," she said.

"He's not my only child, so I think anyone with more than one kid, you're pulled in multiple directions all the time.

"He is bored. He misses having friends. His social aspect is difficult."

Lauren said Austin could become "very, very agitated" and described him as "a coiled spring a lot of the time".

"He fidgets a lot. He twitches a lot. He speaks very, very quickly," she said, adding that Austin was aware he was not at the same level education-wise as other children his age.

"He is very frightened of the reality of going back because he knows he's not at their level."

The Department for Education said 21,960 children in the East Midlands were reported as missing education at any point during the 2023-24 academic year due to not being registered at a school or receiving suitable education.

Robert Martin, chief executive officer of charity Menphys, said many children with SEND were out of education because their needs were not being met.

He added: "These are some of the most vulnerable children in our society, and they're being denied access to something as basic as school.

"The EHCP process which is meant to take 20 weeks legally, can take over a year.

"Many parents are forced to go to tribunal to get the rights of their children met.

"What happens whilst these all of these waits are happening, is the child deteriorates. The child's mental health deteriorates.

"Schools don't have enough funding to be inclusive and what ends up happening the child is either removed from education or, due to the severity of the unmet needs, cannot go."

Looking ahead, Lauren said she wanted her son to have a fair chance.

She added: "I want him to have a school that will advocate for him, support him, and give him the opportunities he deserves."

A county council spokesperson said: "If the panel believes a child's needs can be met in a mainstream setting, they will be offered a place at a suitable school.

"Parents can also request an urgent annual review if they have concerns about the placement."

The government said in the spending review it would be setting out long-awaited plans to reform the SEND system in England this autumn in a government white paper.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: "We have already taken the first steps to identify and meet children's needs earlier in mainstream schools, including through more early intervention across speech and language, ADHD and autism to prevent needs from escalating and £740m to encourage councils to create more specialist places in mainstream schools."

Additional reporting by Adele Wilkinson.

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