To be pissed off with transport for my SEN child?

i know your son has sen - but does he need a driver with a dbs check? one of my kids is nearly 13 - and i would consider by 14 he would be safe from inappropriate harm from a driver to and from school.

eg - I would expect him to be able to call 999 if needed, report inappropriate behaviour, lie and say there was a parent at home if there wasn't etc. taxi drivers are still licensed - it's on record who took who when and where so risk is limited.

my daughter is 9 and much more naïve and i know whether at 14 she would be able for it. i just wondered if the dbs was necessary?

your request for transport seems very reasonable - can you escalate your appeal to tribunal or similar? perhaps ask a solicitor to support to get it organised in time.

There's nothing to understand op. LA's make unlawful decisions all the time and claim they're hunky dory. Then when those decisions are challenged/looked at via the courts, LGO, PAP letters they lose/back down/are found at fault.

You need a pre action letter from a solicitor as stated. Unfortunately sometimes legal action is the only thing they respond to.

Jesus. I can’t even be bothered to explain.

Could you write to your local MP and ask for assistance?

My best friend’s eldest is SEN, and visually impaired. He was refused transport, even though there were spaces available and they picked up another child from the same apartment block.

She wrote a letter to the local MP and he contacted the LA and had the decision overturned.

Why should it when the LA have a duty to provide it

Good luck OP, nothing to add but we have two DS at an SEN school and have to juggle jobs/ transport constantly. I am a teacher and luckily my head had given me some later start/earlier finish to accommodate.

Yes, as SEN parents we are supposed to accept financial support but not too much, work so we are not a burden but not too much.....

I enquired about transport for my dc if she was given a specific school- I was told we would be expected to get a bus. Fortunately it’s all worked out ok, but I really feel for parents fighting yet another battle. Good luck, OP! I agree with making a complaint.

I’m just under a mile away and was offered transport for my SEN child. I would definitely appeal and make a complaint.

SEN transport rules are different to transport to mainstream school.

🤣🤣🤣

But also we should work so we aren't a drain on the taxpayer.

Fuck me there's some ignorance on this thread.

@blackwhitegrey he is absolutely 100% entitled to transport. Don't give up. Contact SENTAS ad they're excellent and helped me get transport for my 13 yr old.

We should be expected to drive him at 14 and that's completely normal and financial needs of working are not relevant and SEN needs are largely glossed over.
Didn't you know, you are supposed to sit in a box waiting for your SEN child to come home.

"why don't you send your 14 year old to a childminder like a normal parent" 🤪

Email SENTAS, this is exactly the type of thing they help with.

@blackwhitegrey could you both put in flexible working requests to allow you to drop off in the mornings and perhaps apply for Direct payments for 5hrs a week enabling for a enabler to pick him up and spend an hr or so with him. If they traveled together by public transport then eventually DS might be confident and capable enough to manage alone.

I work as an enabler and have worked with lots of clients gradually building up their confidence and abilities travelling by public transport.

@MumApril1990 did you actually bother to read the OP?
He is 14 at SEN secondary school and has ASD.

Secondary schools don't have wraparound care!!!
Nor do childminders accommodate 14 year olds!

Thank you, I will do this.

I don't know how to challenge them in a way that works. They just keep saying they are being lawful, even though I know they aren't. I don't know anyone who has 'won' against them so don't know how to achieve it!

Thanks for all the SEN support and guidance.

I've said everything to them in the appeal and they keep saying it's lawful and not discrimination. We should be expected to drive him at 14 and that's completely normal and financial needs of working are not relevant and SEN needs are largely glossed over.

It feels like I'm talking a foreign language to them. When you can speak to someone (never).

We can request a spare seat and pay for it but only if there is one available and they won't even look for one until November. And they can stop it with a weeks notice if a 'free place' child needs it. So it's an option but a risky one and we're stuck until beginning of November.

Unless you are an organisation, you can't get a DBS check for an employee, you'll have to hope they have one through their college/another employer.

But non disabled 14 years olds don't need to do that - that's the issue. It's disability discrimination.

There are no wraparound care options at SEN schools and no SEN childminders

We were one of two families at my DS PRU who didn't get a taxi, too. However, we had a bit of contact with other families as all the local SEN families know each other so at least 3 of his class of 6 were FB friends of friends. Easier in primary I know - and if all fairly local - now he's in an all through school we know nobody.

Your next step is an official complaint to the council and then if you get no joy at the end of that, then a complaint to the local government ombudsman.

There is no minimum distance when Sen is involved.

Expecting a parent to accompany a 14 year old on the young person's walk to school is discriminatory but councils try this on all the time.