Judicial Review To Be Held At High Court On 31 October

Families who will be affected by a council’s plans to reduce its spending on special educational needs have urged the local authority to scrap it plans ahead of a judicial review.

Four families have instructed specialist lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to represent them at a High Court hearing to determine the legality of Hackney Council’s decisions.

Expert Opinion

“The families are hugely concerned by the steps taken by this council and feel they do not ensure that each child will receive the support they need.

“These children are among the most vulnerable members of society and it is clear that a review is needed to ensure they get the help they require. As we have said all along, we would ask the council to speak to the families and rethink its proposals which we feel will only do more harm than good.

“We appreciate that local authorities face significant budget challenges but they still have a duty to ensure all decisions comply with the law.” Anne-Marie Irwin - Senior Associate

Irwin Mitchell’s specialist Public Law and Human Rights team is acting for four families who believe that their children, who have a range of needs, are not currently accessing the level of essential support that they require from schools operated by the council.

A two-day judicial review is now set to be held at the High Court from 31 October. The hearing will examine the council’s banded system for funding such support. The hearing will also determine whether the authority’s decision to change the format of its Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plans should be regarded as unlawful.

The London Borough of Hackney allocates funding to meet the needs of children with SEN using five bands, rather than tailoring the level of funding to the specific needs of each child. The amount of each band was reduced by five per cent earlier this year. The families believe the step was taken without consultation with those affected and will also argue that, under this system, there is no guarantee each child will get the funding to which they are entitled by law.

The legal experts instructed by the families will also argue that the changes made to the EHC Plans used by the council do not meet legal requirements and ultimately mean young people will not get the support they are entitled to.

Find out more about Irwin Mitchell's expertise in handling special educational needs cases.

Case Studies

Hope Dixey

Hope has a rare genetic condition called glutaric academia which means her body cannot break down certain foods.

The five-year-old who attends Thomas Fairfield Community School, uses a frame to walk and is largely non-verbal – she communicates by Makaton sign language.

Hope, who is cared for by her grandparents John and Hilary Roden, has an EHC Plan which dates from when she was two-years-old. 

John said: “We have nothing against Hope’s school, all the staff do their best in difficult circumstances but the fact that her EHC Plan is significantly outdated is really holding back her development.

“Hope is already not receiving the support and care she needs at present so we feel this is only going to get worse if these cuts go ahead.

“We just want what’s best for Hope. All children regardless of their needs deserve the best education possible and this is not going to happen if these cuts go ahead.

“We feel that throughout all of this the council has just ignored our concerns. We didn’t want to take this to court but we feel we have been left without any choice.”

Sade Biggs

Sade, who is 16, has been diagnosed with narcolepsy and cataplexy. These conditions mean that Sade has excessive and persistent day time sleepiness and can experience temporary loss of control of muscles. She requires medication so that she does not fall asleep when eating and walking and often misses information in class due to her condition.

Sade attends New City College Hackney. Her mum Dana Thompson had to apply four times before she was eventually deemed eligible for an EHCP in April.

Dana, 46, said: “We feel that we have had to fight the council every step of the way for Sade to be granted what she needs.

“If these cuts go through we fear that we will be back to square one. We would rather not be in this position but feel that we had to take a stand.

“It seems that more and more councils across the country are seeing SEND budgets as an easy target when it comes to making cost savings.

“All I want is for the council to talk to the families involved in this so we can try and find a solution that will mean vulnerable children receive the education they deserve and are not left without the essential support they need.”

The other two families instructed by Irwin Mitchell cannot be named for legal reasons.

Families who have instructed Irwin Mitchell are awaiting the decision of a judicial review it launched challenging Surrey County Council’s decision to reduce its SEND budgets by over £20 million.

The law firm is also supporting families looking to bring a legal challenge against how central government funds SEND services.

For more information visit the families' CrowdJustice campaign page