This is a shit situation but AIBU that the parents need to be held accountable for their son being out of education?

This is ridiculous. Get that child to school. He’s missing so much of his education, he’ll be behind at whichever school the family accepts. He’s old enough to travel on his own in London. Poor kid.

I can see fault on both sides.

The council say they have been helpful but then go on to spout untruths that only serve to heighten the anxiety and stress the family are experiencing.

It was at this point that Sinead claims a council officer told her "there is no way in hell you should be home-schooling with everything you've got going on". She says he also warned her about a systemic trap.
She claims she was told if she officially registered to home school Shay, he would be removed from the system, and the council would "not go out of their way" to get him back into a physical school further down the line. This apparent advice forced the family to avoid home-schooling to preserve their hope he would get a place at William Perkin - but it means he has been out of education, and Sinead is facing possible prosecution for it.

This is simply lies, and unfortunately it's a very common tactic used by councils to coerce and intimidate parents thinking about home education into sending their children to school. I homeschooled and I had an easy time as I knew my rights, but when a relative of mine took her statemented son out of school you would be shocked by the tactics the school employed to intimidate her into putting him back in, which included feeding wrong information about her right to home education, sending an education welfare officer to her home, reporting her to social services with a load of totally made up lies about her fitness as a parent not just once, but twice who, thankfully had sense and quickly dismissed it.

I also cannot see how they were 'not a priority' to get the school near them considering their difficult circumstances.

Where I think the parents are wrong, is they should have sent him to the next school offered which ok, his friends aren't there, but unfortunately that is the way for many children and they prevented him the opportunity to make new ones by having him start at the same time everyone else did. Their logic also does not make sense. They should still be doing something educational with him at home. He is now stressed about his own future. There's clearly a lot going on with the mother who seems overly protective and under a lot of strain.

Ultimately though, yes, this child should be given the opportunity to go to school and the law should ensure this.

I would imagine most pupils who gain and appeal place for social/ educational reasons could technically go elsewhere. But the appeal allows for the best outcome for the pupil, not the basics

Its normal for Secondary school pupils yo travel alone. London has free travel for under 16s. So he can attend an alternative school, the parents just dont want him too.

Gosh, that sounds like they have all gone through the mill. I'm not sure I understand the logistics of him being able to access one school but not another the same distance away but I don't think they'd be making their own and his life harder for sport.

The percentage of kids who didn't get their first preference in this area seems strikingly high for this current year group, ours managed to get almost 96% into their preferred school.

It all seems unnecessarily bureaucratic. They cannot homeschool their son because, if they do, then they lose out on getting him into the school that can work. Who made up that rule?

Tbh, I don’t understand why he can’t get the preferred school on appeal for the social reasons she details. Secondary schools can and do go over PAN.

not saying she should be able to blackmail her way in, but it does seem an unfortunate set of circumstances

The level of entitlement is off the scale - you send your child to a new school and he makes new friends. The council isn't going to put him in the preferred school because it sets a prescedent that other parents may follow which is extremely detrimental to the child.

Or just go to the other school whilst waiting for a place at the preferred one. Seems simpler. Understandable that the boy wants to be with his friends but thousands of kids deal with the same thing without playing the SEND card.

There is a flaw in the system - if you say you’re home educating then the LA no longer has any obligation to find a school place for you. There should be a way to say “I’m home educating until a place comes up at my preferred school” and then stay on that waiting list. That way they could educate at home while waiting.

Agree its a shitty situation but this boy should not be paying the price for it by missing out on his education.