Crowdfunding Appeal Launched After Group Instructs Specialist Lawyers At Irwin Mitchell

Families are set to launch a legal battle against the government, believing its special educational needs funding policy has created a ‘national crisis.’

The families of two boys who have special educational needs have launched a crowdfunding campaign to bring a legal challenge, calling on Education Secretary, Damian Hinds, and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, to increase funding to local authorities.

They believe that current government grants are leaving local authorities without enough money to fulfil their legal obligation of providing care for pupils with a range of disabilities and conditions.

The group, calling itself SEND Family Action, is appealing for people to donate to its appeal to raise funds to allow parents to investigate whether there are grounds to challenge the government.

The families, including parents from North Yorkshire and East Sussex, have consulted specialist lawyers at Irwin Mitchell and barrister Stephen Broach, of Monckton Chambers, about the lawfulness of current arrangements. 

Expert Opinion

“Through our work in helping families of children with special educational needs we have seen the increasing strain local authorities are being placed under because of budget cuts.

“The issue of councils being able to fund specialist services is a growing problem with concern that an increasing number of local authorities are failing to meet their statutory responsibilities to disabled children.

“The families are concerned that local authorities are not receiving enough funding so wish to investigate whether there are legal grounds to challenge the government over its funding support.

“They believe that thousands of children across the UK with special educational needs are currently unable to receive the support that they need.” Anne-Marie Irwin - Senior Associate

You can donate to the appeal on theirCrowdJustice page.

Irwin Mitchell is also representing families of children with special education needs in Hackney and Surrey who are opposing local authority cuts to services in their area.

A judicial review to decide the legality of Surrey County Council’s proposals to slash £20 million from services for disabled children is due to be heard in the High Court on 2 and 3 October. A similar hearing into Hackney Council’s plans is scheduled to start on 31 October and is listed for two days.

According to the Department for Education:

• Pupils with identified SEND account for almost half of all permanent exclusions.
• Pupils with SEND are up to six times more likely to be excluded.
• The number of pupils with SEND without a school place more than doubled from 2016 to 2017 from 1,710 to 4,050.
• More than 4,000 SEND pupils were left without a school place last year compared with 776 in 2010.

Find out more about Irwin Mitchell's expertise in handling education law cases. 

For more information, gov.uk has reports about permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England from 2016-2017 available for download.

Case studies

East Sussex

Nico Heugh Simone, 15, from Robertsbridge, has autism, anxiety and related conditions which means he requires specialist educational care to remain in a mainstream school.

When he started secondary school in September 2014  East Sussex County Council  would not meet the total cost of his care, arguing the school should pay the shortfall out of its budget.

However, following legal submissions the local authority agreed to meet the full cost of care.

This process was repeated in 2015. However, the following year the school was advised that a new scoring system would see Nico’s funding reduced.

This has seen the money the school receives from East Sussex County Council for Nico significantly reduced. However, the cost of the care he needs has remained the same.

Nico’s mum, Lorraine Heugh, 57, said: “Nico really enjoys school, he has lots of friends who along with the teachers have been great in helping him progress.

“Nico’s is at a key stage of his education and his upcoming GCSEs will go a long way to determining his life chances. He should be able to concentrate on these but instead we are once again battling for him to receive the support he needs.

“Cuts to SEND budgets are being made across the country. It has got to the point now where this is a national crisis.

“Nico feels strongly about helping to support other children to have access to a good quality education and for schools to be better resourced to support the children. He has close friends who have spent years out of school and their parents have repeatedly been fighting for an appropriate placement and provision so he has seen first-hand the heartache this has caused.

“Families can’t sit back any longer and watch this unfold. It is obvious that councils do not have enough money because of the funding they receive.”
 

North Yorkshire

Benedict McFinnigan has been diagnosed as having post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and chronic insomnia.

The 14-year-old from Scarborough, North Yorkshire, has been refused an education healthcare assessment by North Yorkshire County Council because the local authority said he does not meet its criteria  for having special educational needs.

He has not attended a mainstream school for two years and was taught at home. Benedict, who has a three-year-old brother Brian, is currently attending a pupil referral unit for less than three hours a day.

His mum Kirsty, 40, a full time carer for her children, said:  “We are trying to do the best for Benedict but we are not the experts. He deserves to be receiving the best education available like all other children.

“Ben was hoping with support to be able to have the opportunity to reintegrate into a mainstream school where he hoped to be able to choose his options and ultimately be able to go to university one day. His mental health has declined as he no longer feels he will have the opportunity to do so.

“Ben is at a time when he is beginning his GCSE years. His whole future and life chances are being put at stake by his current lack of support to access an equal education

“It is clear that the number of children with disabilities not being able to receive the help they need is growing. If councils and head teachers across the country are telling us they don’t have enough money there is clearly a national problem.

“The money comes from the top with regards to the Government so we want to take our fight for change to the top.”