To be disapointed by the lack of support for Harvey?

[mynameisbob]

I am no fan of Katie Price, but I am really disappointed that most of the feedback I have seen regarding the LEA support Harvey has for his disability has been all about the fact that his mother is a high earner? We have a welfare state in this country for a reason- to help those in society that need it most- eg disabled children!!!. Do we want a welfare state or not? I am fearful that this country is turning into a very selfish and judgemental society that the Government is turning to it's advantage, and the welfare state will slowly be eroded away. I am am not saying that KP has any right to claim benefits, but this is about her child's education.

Aargh!

Luckily for those

surely not a journo, isn't this yesterday's news now?

Bean no....well yes..but there is more scope. It's KP and it's "free" stuff for the disabled isn;t it? It's gold...they;ll squeeze another day out of it.

Eurgh what a depressing world we live in Mrs. the radio debate I heard also asked me as it kept referring to Katie price as a glamour model and everytime they said her name they were like "aka jordan". is that at all relevant??!

*annoyed me not asked

bean the good thing is that she's very thick skinned...or at least she says she is. I hope she doesn't give a flying fuck about those arses who say rude things about her. She's smarter than all of them put together anyway.

agreed... I think she's very likeable, articulate and level headed. but haters gonna hate!

when I was a child there were no local special schools, and there was also no inclusion. So I was expected to go to a specialist school for children with VI, except the closest one to where we lived was a five hour bus ride. So I went there every monday, boarded and then came home every friday, along with several other children in the area who were VI and several more deaf children who went to the school for the deaf in the same town.

Back then (we're talking late 70's early 80's) the expectation was that if you had a disabled child they would be sent away to special school, regardless of whether the disability was physical or a learning disability. And when a local family decided to send their blind child to a mainstream school it was so out of the ordinary the story made it into the press.

And then things moved on, many of the specialist schools were closed (not necessarily a step I agree with but that's a discussion for another thread) and children were educated in mainstream school and given the support they needed. And even those children who were not suited to a mainstream environment were more likely to get a place in a school more local to them, for which they were provided transport.

And then the local special schools started to close, and the children going to those schools were re-allocated places in schools much, much further away from their families.This is a step backwards to the days when the expectation was that children with disabilities should be sent away. This shouldn't be happening. KP shouldn't be in a position where she has to defend her severely disabled son's right to transport to his school. If he didn't have disabilities he would be in a local mainstream school with her other children. But he does have severe disabilities, and as such his need for an education does not fit with the local education system.

This isn't a child going to Eten and wanting the government to pay, this is a child who has no choice but to be sent to a school 1.5 hours away because there is no local alternative. That fact alone should entitle him to the transport there, before we even get to the reality of his disabilities or his mother's income.

Yanbu.

His transport won't cost 1k a day tho, my son faces a similar journey with driver and escort. It costs the LEA 15k a year. His school place costs around 65k.

I am definitely not a Journalist, just someone who is getting angry about the general mood in society that begrudges people help from the state, whether that is a free education, NHS care or welfare benefits. Thank you to all the posters who have supported KP and Harvey, you have restored my faith that not everyone has bigoted views about who is entitled to help from the state. Definitely going to wean myself off Newspaper forums, it just makes me depressed and angry. I'll stick to MN from now on.

I think newspaper forums seem to attract a certain kind of poster bob. Best to stay away if you value your blood pressure. You can't argue with stupid.

If KP was forced to pay for his transport then surely she would be forced to pay for his health care and that of her other kids and then what if her money you know.....ran out ! Poor kid being splashed all over the news again.
Any tax payer that begrudges a disabled child transport to school is a fuckin disgrace !
If only there was the same uproar at shutting his local school in the first place !

But mama what if his mum decided she didn't want to spend the cash on getting him there?

He needs to be protected and provided for by the state.Not all children will have parents who value education or who would want the hassle. Some may think they'd be better off saving it for him.

His county paying for his transport protects his education.

I support Harvey and KP.

That money is to benefit Harvey who is not rich in his own right, so yes, I support them too.
Many thousands of pensioners get their heating, prescriptions, bus passes, eye tests etc paid for that they can well afford themselves...

I am no KP fan but I absolutely agree that Harvey is entitled to be schooled, and if that has to include transport to school, then he's entitled to that too.
I had a free bus pass to get to school 7 miles away as a 14 year old. I could have bought it myself (had a saturday job) should I have given up my free £5 buspass and bought it out of my £10 wages?
Also I'm sure when Harvey was at a local school (before the LA decided to shut it and save money by shipping the kids far and wide, therfore costing the taxpayer less, for those of you who still think KP and Harvey are literally getting a "free ride") I recall Katie did a lot of fundraising and donating to the school for equipment etc.

say what you like about katie price .her TALENT is minimul but she obviously adores her children and as the mother of an autistic child i think she should get free education .and transport .even although my son is home educated through lack of special schools in my area .its her right well more important its harvey,s right .

My spends 2 hours a day in a taxi going to and from his specialist school. The school placement and taxi (with escort) cost the LA about £60 000 a year but they would rather do this for my son and a dozen other local children than provide an adequate education locally. If he was not disabled he would be going to the local school 5 mins walk away.
We don't move closer to the school because this would take us further away from dh's workplace and family support.
Harvey having this transport is no different from other rich people using state schools, the NHS and any other state supported services and facilities.

My son*

Moving to be near the nearest specialist provision to us, would mean, my husband leaving his job, we live in a house provided by his work, so he would have to find the same deal in the new area, my 2 girls having to leave their school where all their friends are, and where one has very good provision for her dyslexia. We would have to find somewhere for my elderly mother to live, as she moved to be near us so we could help her. We would also have to set up a whole new set of professionals and support for ds in a different area- this is about 20 different health care professionals and therapists, all of whom have known him since he was 6 months old.

Mama, your sister may well have been willing to do all these things, I don't know - but frankly I would not as it would be too detrimental to our whole family.

ghostyslovesheep

Those benefits (tax credit and child benefit) are explicitly paid to parents so kindly get off your high horse and do your research.

So Harvey's school closes . KP moves house 3 hours nearer for him , because hey , she can afford to , and that's all that matters right ? I mean , the fact that the other 4 kids have just had their entire world removed from under their feet , well that just doesn't matter does it , because their mother's got so much money , she can just buy them some new friends.

Why should an entire family have to uproot just because the government think it's ok to shut their local school ? And what if they close the next one ? And then one after that ? Are they supposed to live out of boxes permanently just in case ? Because there's masses of cheap and suitable housing available countrywide just waiting to be occupied dincha know.

If you have a threshold where those over a certain tax bracket can't access some services , then they tend to stop caring about those services . Ask the parents at most private schools about the state of local authority schools , and they won't give a shit , because they don't use them. So it makes it easier for the government to cut yet more , because those opposed tend to have less cash , and less clout to protest , and less numbers of course. All this arguing over the haves and have nots simply gives the government ammunition . They quietly win, while we're arguing over the pounds.

onedamnthing I seriously doubt if KP is in receipt of either tax credits or child benefit.