Is this appropriate conduct for solicitors?

[AugustaFinkNottle]

A solicitors' firm which acts for councils in special educational needs tribunals has tweeted the following:

"Great ABA Trib win this week ... interesting to see how parents continue to persist with it. Funny thing is parents think they won ;)"

I can't link to it due to having been blocked but it's been retweeted, e.g here.

The original tweet resulted in numerous complaints and a quick change to the tweet.

The case they're triumphalising about will have involved a disabled child. Lovely.

The Guardian are now reporting it

Fury as law firm boasts of 'great win' over parents of vulnerable children

Ive read this thread and not yet commented.

I find the whole think so extremely shocking (just start tribunal route for refusal to assess) I've needed to take time to digest it all.

It's just disgusting. The LA (or at least mine!) play games of it being schools responsibility and their EP's back them up in reports rather than tell the truth but to think Karen's are already spending 1000's of pin fighting the system - and LA's are spending 1000's more (which could be spent meeting needs) fighting parents just takes all faith away from the system.

I also noted the tone of the apology seemed to hint it wasn't MS posting them. But from what I believe from here it was?

Starlight and ANewDay, is it correct that the Tribunal is supposed to be inquisitorial and not adversarial? I asked upthread but no one replied. If so surely the Tribunal ought to clamp down on this kind of behaviour, do they not? Even if deterrent is the aim, that could be done more efficiently I suspect. I sincerely hope some good comes out of this in that it shines a light on these processes and there are changes. There definitely seems to be an "inequality of arms" problem here, amongst others.

It is supposed to be inquisitorial yes. But it also attempts to be informal.

I think the latter is at odds with being able to apply the law properly tbh, and leads to sloppy practice.

Starlight and ANewDay, is it correct that the Tribunal is supposed to be inquisitorial and not adversarial

Yes. It's also supposed to be collaborative and always "in the child's best interests". This is not the case. LAs regularly break the law and are rarely held to account. This totally outs me - if I haven't already outed myself - but I reported "my" LA to the local government ombudsman for my LAs disregard of certain elements of the Education Act. This I cannot hold against BS as they were already off my case by then - this breaking of key clauses in the Education Act was entirely the LAs own doing. The LGO upheld my complaint. Although the LGO are also in bed with the LA and the LA just got a slap on the wrist. Also, to rub salt into the wound, the LGO also had to apologise to me for the way they had handled my complaint.

I don't think it outs you ANewDay. There are hundreds of parents forced to escalate to the toothless and ineffective LGO for breaches of the Act and who then have to make a complaint about the way the LGO handled it, - hundreds!

Cambridgeshire CC have tweeted that they will no longer be using Baker Small for legal advice. Let's hope all the other councils follow suit!

Sorry that should say they've taken legal advice and won't be using BS for new cases.

Ok, maybe not hundreds, but certainly dozens.

That's true Star

I meant more that I've posted enough over time on mumsnet & now elsewhere for people to work out who I am and my RL name. But, I think I'm beyond caring now.

Baker Smalls "innappropriate tweets were sent" apology reminds me of my boy's clever way to skirt responsibility by saying (e.g.) mummy the ball just hit the window and broke it

Glad about this coverage. Appalled by the gloating of the law firm. And will also be glad if it helps bring to light the wider scandal regarding provision for children with special needs being so restricted

Or my little brother:

'Somebody wet my pants!'

starlight

On a serious note, it

I still just can't understand why someone would wish to attack the parents of disabled children and feel that they look like some sort of hero. It's utterly sick.

Starlight - did BS have involvement in all your tribunals?

in Bristol Post

Schools Week

starlight have I completely misunderstood those tweets? It very much seemed to me as if that headteacher was defending the lawyers?
I have let him have his little strop but surely he was?

Thanks Starlight and ANewDay for answering. It sounds as though the Tribunals should be keeping the participants in check but are not doing so. I'm not surprised that lawyers and the legal system get a bad name from this type of thing. I'm amazed LAs are spending on external lawyers for an informal, inquisitorial process when LA budgets and services are being cut - I work in-house for a large corporate and imagine I would get short-shrift from my boss if I proposed spending in that type of forum unless there was a really vital point at stake. Taxpayers should be entitled to similar levels of frugality and common-sense from LAs.
Well, if I'm in a position to take on some pro bono work in future I'll definitely see if there is anything I can usefully do in the SEND area. I have no connection to the SEND community but as a solicitor I am appalled by these tweets and the pressure parents are being put under whilst trying to obtain the right educational support for their child. Let's hope some good things come out of the scrutiny this process is now under.

Lottie, they were in my life for 3 years continuously. hT couldn't even hold an IEP meeting w/o them attending.

Jeremy, I wasn't keeping track really. There was an absence of professional comment generally in the whole thing.

I'm not sure they understand that parents aren't upset and angry because they have to deal with a few aggressive words at a hearing, and that hostility coping is a daily occurrence with SEND kids you want to take out often anyway.

Parents anger is for practices well beyond a legal battle and a raised voice.

Crikey - poor you. I had no idea. I've been here for years but have name changed.

That's very kind rural, organisations who help parents are:

IPSEA
SOSSEN

Also NAS and CAF have legal helplines,

Some of it was MN, quite a bit wasn't when so found out they were using my posts to plan their strategy/tactics i.e timings of shocking letters to coincide with other stresses that I was sharing and handing transcripts of my posts to the benefits office to try and make an allegation my son wasn't as disabled as he was,

Thanks for the names Starlight. I will keep a note of them and will contact them when I'm ready to take on some extra voluntary work.

Thank you Ruralretreating

It is good to know that there are some good guys

As well as coping with a vindictive bullying LA (with BS behind them at one point), I personally was having to "cope" with the day to day "challenges" of being a good mother to my SEN child (as wells as my other children). I also had to personally home school him for exactly one academic year whilst I "fought" my LA for something that was his by law in the first place - the right to an education that he could access.

Many of us who go through it, liken our feelings afterwards to having PTSD.