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

You would want to get some breakdown cover for sure!

That said it only needs to last a few months until youngest finishes yr 6.

But it is a problem - they can’t just stay stuck in the middle of nowhere with no transport.

I am absolutely aware that things are not so simple. But that doesn’t change the fact that it unfortunately sounds unsustainable.

Edit: as @Parentingconfusing just wrote:

it is a problem - they can’t just stay stuck in the middle of nowhere with no transport.

Well there must be a process for un-naming the school and allocating a different one? What would happen if the OP moved several hours away? Would the LA have to provide a helicopter?

No the responsibility woukd be for the new LA to find a suitable school.

If it's a special school, it may be the only one in the area or the only one in the area that can meet his needs. Especially since it seems to be a remote area.

If it's a mainstream school, another school may be named but again, it depends on why the nearer schools weren't named in the first place. It's possible they all said they wouldn't be able to meet his needs and unless his needs have changed which since he still has an EHCP, isn't likely, they are unlikely to suddenly be able to meet his needs if they've already said that they can't.

Which in the long run it might make more economic sense for the government to have a scheme so she can get a replacement car.

Exactly. Oh and FYI, I live in rural North Yorkshire and believe me, it is possible to move multiple hours away and still be under the same LA.

There is. Motability.

Have you looked into Motability, OP? You must qualify, surely?

Well in that case the its the L/A ,s responsibility to find a suitable school and get the child there.

I don’t and never have had a car. So my life has to be organised in a way I can manage without a car. It’s not a disability to be without a vehicle, it’s not other taxpayer’s responsibility to accommodate your life style. A car is a luxury. Your family can’t afford the luxury therefore you have to change your life to accommodate your life style and unfortunately that means that your children may need to change schools or have a long commute. My commute is an hour instead of 20 mins because I don’t drive. If what you have deemed is that a car is not a luxury but an essential for your family then you need to cut your cloth in other ways or take on additional employment.

You could also look at relocating somewhere with better transport links - as again I have had to do. You cannot live in a remote location without a car and need to have shops/drs etc in reasonable walking/public transport distance.

But the OP has moved - there may not have been nearer appropriate schools at the time the EHCP was put in place, but that may not be the case now.

I agree though it’s down to the LA to provide either a suitable alternative school or transport to the current one. All children are entitled to an education.

Why would yoy think that ?
Without knowing the Ops disabilities and those of her DH and child and how they impact them, its impossible to say if any of them qualify For HRM

Yes, I agree. The thing is, if the LA offer an alternative school place, the OP will not be happy with that resolution as she doesn’t want to move her child from the current school.

Why would I say that? Because I am making a suggestion. That is all. Perhaps something to investigate.
No, I don't know what their disabilities are, but if neither can work and they live rurally it may well be worth investigating.
Surely.

Could you try a crowdfunder on social media? If you briefly and factually set out your circumstances, people may contribute to the cost of a cheap runaround car.

Did you miss the fact that the Op
and her Dh and son do in fact have disabilities?
And it wasent their choice to live where they live ?
Your own situation is completely irrelevant.

Is it named as the only school in the area that can cope with his needs, or named as the school he currently attends?
If it's the first then you have a better chance of qualifying for transport than if it is the latter.

You said Surely they must qualify, without knowing any of the facts there is no surely about it.

If there is a nearer suitable school the LA could potentially get away without providing transport. However, I think there is a good argument that, where you have a child in Y6 with an EHCP naming their current school, any other school at this stage, with less than 2 terms to go in primary school, would not be suitable even if it could cope with his needs.

For the older child, since the LA allocated the school rather than the parents choosing it, it was presumably the nearest suitable school with places available at the time. If they still lived at the same address, places opening up at nearer schools don't give the school a get out of jail free card - they must still provide free transport to the allocated school. However, as they are not at the same address it depends how far they have moved. If they moved half a mile up the road, for example, the council could not realistically argue that they should move their daughter to a nearer school. However, if they have moved 20 miles away from the school, the council could certainly argue that their daughter should attend a school nearer home if there are places available.

Oh dear god. I am so very sorry. I am completely in the wrong.
Let me re phrase:
OP perhaps you could investigate the Motability Scheme? I have no idea whether you qualify or not, but it may well be worth investigating, although I could be completely wrong. Just a suggestion.
Is that preferable?

Even if OP or someone else in the family qualified, it isn't free and I imagine they are unlikely to afford the advance payment needed which is often thousands of pounds.

Good luck, OP. It sounds challenging for you and your children. I'm off now, but I hope you get the support you need.

This sounds tricky!

I think you need to solve this without expecting other people to fix it for your with handouts and benefits. The obvious thing is to move your kids to new local schools. Uniform could almost certainly be supplied from the school thrift shop if you explained, and for your son you could hand it back to the school in July. I don’t know anyone who buys brand new uniform it’s a total waste of money when there’s a mountain in the school second hand shop.

Or If your dh is signed off work could he homeschool your ds until end of year? My dd experience of y6 was boring recaps of core subjects until May to try and pass SATs, then after May they just mucked around and didn’t really learn anything - the primary school she went to literally didn’t care after the point of SAT measurement. She’d have learned more sitting at home with a couple of library books for a few hours then spending rest of day playing or doing art or helping in the garden/cooking dinner with me! It wouldn’t be hard to homeschool to the same standard. There is all the content you need on BBC bitesize.

Where will ds go to secondary school - if he goes to school with his sister you’ll be able to cycle with them to catch the bus at 8am?

Better yet Can you move both kids to a secondary school closer to home in time for September? If dd is thriving at her current school she’s obviously capable and you could be optimistic she is likely to thrive at another school too.

35 miles is a really long commute to school. Four hours of travel a day on buses is too much. I do think you must move dd unless she is in y10 or y11. if you are settled in your new home the move would be best for her.

Thank you for that. Good points. I know someone who benefitted from the scheme, but didn't know all the ins and outs.