What am I supposed to do RE School?

[Soubriquet]

We no longer have a car. We cannot afford to replace it either which means we can no longer get the dc to school.

dd has council transport but it’s from the local town rather than our actual destination, which means she has to get the 7am bus, to get into town, in order to catch her 8am bus to school. Then the reverse happens and she doesn’t get home will gone 5. Purely because of the times plus it’s going to cost us £15 a week!!

ds on the other hand is still at primary school and his school is not in any form of walking distance, nor is there a bus that goes that way. The council has also declined us for transport (which I will appeal) because it’s not the nearest school. I’m aware it isn’t the nearest but he’s in year 6! Am I really supposed to transfer schools for 5 months, fork out for new uniforms, and uproot a child who is on the ECHP and SEN plan at his school? Where they know how to handle him?

It’s a bloody nightmare. He’s been absent the last two days because we genuinely cannot get him to school!!

We are in the process of talking to both schools to see if we can come up with a solution

Is it the reading or the comprehension that you struggle with?

So your oldest CAN get to school. It's not ideal, but it can be done.

Your youngest.. you need to get a taxi. You can phone round local companies and hopefully get a reasonable deal per week.

You CAN get them to school. It might not be the ideal solution, but you're saying it can't be done. It can.

Faffing around making home made cards might be a nice hobby for some but its hardly going to mske a fortune
And that assuming the Op is Crafty ,also shelling out for materials ,when you dont know if there is a market for it and you are skint is not the best use of money imo.

So unhelpful

This is not helpful to a parent who ends up in this situation honestly..

As a lone parent (my children's father took his own life) with no family and due to my widow's secret gambling addiction, my credit rating is in the trenches. I couldn't get a credit card or even a pay day type money if I wanted to.

My youngest child has significant SEND, EHCP and no suitable school named. Receiving some alternative provision while this painfully slow process plays out but due to this and bereavement I have gone from having a career and job of 15 years to unemployment and unable to work until youngest has a school.

My car failed MOT so badly it wasn't economical to fix despite passing previous with no advisories. We were stuck, savings gone on funeral. Loss of both their father's and my income relying on universal credit all within 14 months.

I know I am not the only person to have everything collapse and end up in an impossible situation even without the heartbreak of suicide or bereavement but just life, job loss, etc.

My advice to OP is if there is no way you can find £500 for something to get you to a to b even if just for a year, then you should request travel assistance on exceptional grounds.contact the school and explain your predicament. They may be able to offer short term help. Any friends or family or children's friends I've locally organised pass you on the way to school? Put yourself out there and see if anyone could transport your child for a contribution each week (without car you will have no car insurance or car tax at least so this is hopefully possible).

Last thing, I managed within 3 months to sell literally all old baby clothes, toys, anything that I could... Mostly on vinted. I saved enough to find a cheap car (under 1k) which has been extremely reliable. Thankfully the kindest of eldest's school friends parents who offered to stop on their way and drop each evening meant we managed. Her mum refused a weekly contribution or any fuss but I saved this up and gave a thank you bouquet and m&s voucher once I found the car.

If you have helped other parents at your children's schools out previously you will hopefully find most in a position to help will happily do so and you can help in return in future. But yes it is a horrible situation to be in and if you can't find a car or borrow money etc then I was amazed how quickly I was able to raise by selling old clothes, toys, bikes etc we had gathering dust.

I'm amazed at the people who just assume that you are some how going to be able to afford a car when you say you can't.

I think DD is just going to have to do the long days and that your other child's transport appeal works.

And if you have a lot of debts or simply money is much too tight I suggest you seek advice from a budget or debt councilor. Citizen's Advice might help with that as well as the transport appeal. Other advice agencies are StepChange, National Debtline, Community Money Advice (CMA) and Christians against Poverty (CAP). The first 2 deal only with debt but the last 2 usually have a more holistic approach.

Or go to the Money Saving Expert and look for the debtfree wannabee forum - losts of advice available there too.

Read the thread.
It was established pages ago that the OP wouldn't get a loan and that £500 isn't a great amount for a car.
I didn't know that when I wrote that first reply.

‘Your Gran’ before the welfare state? Would that be prior to 1945 then or do you mean the 1911 Liberal reforms? Either way, don’t you think that, oh I don’t know, in 2026 Britain, things should be better than 80-110 ish years ago?
But yes ‘card making’ will defo help OP get her DS to school tomorrow.

If you Receive PIP for the mobility element you can get a motability car.

OK. So, your daughter can get to/from school. It's not ideal, but doable. Getting her to cycle to the station sounds like an option to make her day a little shorter. I used to do 16 miles each way to secondary school, and a lot of people read/studied on the school bus. I couldn't, as it makes me really travel sick, but that could be a way for her to multi-task, and therefore not have to just start her homework when she gets home. £15 a week for her does add up, so if there's a safe cycle route, that would definitely help - and worth seeing if there's any grants to cover this, given this was the only school available to her (if my understanding is correct.)

However, your son's position is more problematic, and it does sound like you need to pursue through the SENCO/other school routes. Otherwise, are there no other families who travel even part of the way for him? If there's any way you can ask via the PTA, or similar, I would say that might be an option too.

You are in a tough position, and it's not entirely of your own making. People just don't understand the additional costs of being disabled/having disabled children, and it's important to check if you're getting everything you're entitled to. I recently was awarded Adult Disability Payment (Scotland), and with it, eligibility for a Blue Badge, free bus pass, and (paid for) disabled person's railcard. The travel passes entitle someone else to travel with me for free. Whilst it's not in the spirit of the pass, if you had to, even in the short term, I would consider travelling myself, and taking the child as your accompanying person. Yes, it's not what it's for really, but if it's the difference between your child getting to school or not.....

Parents cannot just accept a place at a new school for a child with an EHCP. If the LA finds another school which can meet his needs and has room to do so, which won't be a quick process, there would have to be a review, which necessitates getting together several professionals whose diaries are usually filled months in advance, to agree to update the legal document.
We are already practically at February half-term, SATs take place early in the Summer Term, it is highly unlikely that the Ed. Psych and others will agree that it is in the child's best interests to move school at this stage when he should be working towards transitioning to High School. Very often SEND children have difficulties around change, so, if that is the case, 2 changes in less than 6 months would definitely not be in this child's best interests.

Why are you so negative and scornful of a poster making some suggestions that might help OP make some income from home to support her family? Do you think it's beneath her somehow to try ?

I don't need to answer your questions about timelines.

The dates are irrelevant. What matters is that it's sometimes possible to be resourceful and think outside of the box (ie benefits) and consider how it may just be possible to earn money legally, and from home.

Things are hugely better in 2026 because otherwise they would not have PIP, UC and other benefits.

But - and you can read the OP's posts- this is NOT ENOUGH. And may never be if her applications are turned down.

And the money from those won't arrive tomorrow either.

OP made a choice to have children, and it is her responsibility to give them an education. I am also left-wing and think the state should provide a safety net, but we are now at a point where the state providing SEN children with transport to school is costing this country BILLIONS of pounds. That is not sustainable given all of our public services are on their knees AND not all of those children have profound need — not all of them have parents incapable of meeting their needs themselves. A social safety net is not about no one ever experiencing any hardship or challenge as a result of their circumstances; it's about eradicating absolute poverty/need/want. Having to take some buses to get your child to a suitable school, when you don't work, is not a terrible hardship - OP is housed by the state, she has children educated by the state, she is provided with income/benefits that enable her to get public transport even if that takes ages. People seem to want to live in luxury with zero challenge, and that just isn't realistic.

Will the people all suggesting a Motability vehicle put the fucking brakes on a second..

Motability vehicles cost, and are not dropped off at your house the day after you order one!

Motability will cost: £77.05 a week- of the 'no advance fee' options there are two vehicles, the Dacia Spring and the Kia Picanto that are not the full payment so OP would have a whole £7.05 or £5 left from their mobility payment. One of those is electric though, she'd need a charging point and off road parking.

From selecting a vehicle to taking delivery of that vehicle will be somewhere around 6 weeks to 8 months. Depends on whether the make/model is actually in stock and available, the lead times on new cars in some cases is crazy.

All this assumes that a/ the OP qualifies for Motability and b/ can afford to repurpose £77 a week. Given OP states they cannot afford various things, this is highly unlikely.

PIP is there to contribute towards, not fully cover, the increased costs of everything - mines currently going on the heating, extra warm clothing, and food, because my disabilities mean I struggle to regulate my temperature and getting too hot or too cold can trigger an automomic crash that fucks me over for weeks, ditto eating the wrong things (triggers gastroparesis which will trigger an autonomic crash).

@Katey83 we'll just put the SEN kids back in institutions then....

@Soubriquet Ask your GP for a referral to a Social Prescriber.

This is someone who should know exactly what help is out there, what you'll qualify for, how to access it and will support you through doing that.

OP the SENCO can't do anything. @prh47bridge's posts are spot on. If the school is named in the EHCP, then legally the LA agrees the school is suitable and it has not made arrangements for your son to attend anywhere else. Therefore the LA is in breach of its statutory duties.

You need to complain to the Director of Children's Services at your LA. If you don't know who this is, you can look it up here. IPSEA also has some excellent advice.

Sending you strength and hope you get this sorted quickly.

Still waiting on the SENCO but I may have a solution. It’s a prebookable bus that I can purchase a ticket on there and back, for £1 each way. It doesn’t go directly to the school, it drops him off about 5 mins walk away, but I can use my disabled bus pass on this to travel for free and physically take him and pick him up!

That's a fantastic solution 👌

Thank you. I’m looking into it now

If the school is named in the EHCP then they may well be responsible for the school transport as well. It might be worth contacting them here https://www.ipsea.org.uk/ because they're experts in the legal side of SEND. I always found saying I'd contacted them made my LA rethink things. Good luck.

I’d be trying to get my child into the school nearest to home, you wouldn’t have to buy a new uniform majority of schools they wear a white shirt and black/grey trousers and a coat, I’m sure you could get a plain jumper without school emblem on it or majority of schools has a second hand uniform shop.
failing that I’d home school

Any parents near you whose kids go to those schools, who might give lifts in return for favours (like childcare)?

I would have to purchase new shirts because his current school is teal shirts with blue jumpers. If I did move schools, I would have to get some white shirts which isn’t a big deal.

Ironically, if DID transfer schools for him, the council would have to pay for transport anyway because it’s further than 2 miles by foot

No it is likely that the LA would change and the EHCP would be transferred out. The new LA would need to consider home tuition while a new school was organised. Not ideal it does happen though.