AIBU disabled DC and school trip

[Manic20201]

My DC class is going on a school trip at the end of term. They school are refusing to take them due to disability ( tube fed )
We have had medical clearance from health team and she has a trained 1–1.
AIBU to believe ( this is now nearly 4 years of never attending a school trip ) that it’s getting ridiculous. She is so sad about it and waited a long time to go.

If school are trying to count your dd’s 1-1 for ratio purposes on a trip, I would be asking very specific questions about how the 1-1 is generally used during school time. It sounds as though the school are used to using the 1-1 as a general member of staff, and this is not what the 1-1 is funded for.

The school needs to set up the trip with the right adult/child ratio without using the 1-1, and not misappropriate the specially trained and funded 1-1.

I suspect the 1-1 is being used as a general TA by the school, and not specifically assigned to your dd even when at school.

The school is definitely not following the EHCP, and is disregarding it’s legal duties.

Raise this again stating she has been deprived as her 1/1 went on trips she didn’t get to attend. I would go beyond LA and start asking for national standards.

"No member of staff is obliged to take responsibility for an individual with a condition they are not comfortable with"

But the child's needs still need to be met. The OP only has to consider that and not what any one else involved might think or feel.
I cannot be doing with people emotionally blackmailing parents of disabled children. Pisses me right off. If a member of staff doesn't want to do it then one who does needs to be found.

My daughter is tube fed, with a physio, nebuliser and drug regime that is very time consuming ( around school hours) . She attended every school trip, with modifications where necessary ( she didn't go into the humid crocodile enclosure at the zoo and they had a tent put up for her and a friend on an overnight camp where the accommodation was a hut with potential leaf mould) ....my point is that they can and should make adjustments for her under the disability discrimination laws.

Is there a charity that support people with her condition? They may be able to help write a formal letter pointing out the schools responsibility to make reasonable adjustments ( and that does not include you attending all the time) . On overnight trips I often popped up to flush her tube ( and that was because it was so new to us initially) but the teachers took over everything else.

Very good advice here I would also contact the organisation that employ the 1-1 and inform them what is going on that your dd’s 1-1 is being used for other purposes and not to look after your dd
Good luck

@Sleepyblueocean

"No member of staff is obliged to take responsibility for an individual with a condition they are not comfortable with"

But the child's needs still need to be met. The OP only has to consider that and not what any one else involved might think or feel.
I cannot be doing with people emotionally blackmailing parents of disabled children. Pisses me right off. If a member of staff doesn't want to do it then one who does needs to be found.

Where are you quoting from? The 1:1 should have a specific contract that ensures s/he will meet the needs of the OPs dd. Having taught in SEN schools, I’m amazed at the idea the school think they can just not take her on trips. I’ve always taken my classes (which are obviously made up entirely of disabled children) out for trips, including on public transport. It requires planning, care, risk assessments etc but it really isn’t asking the impossible. In fact when we were doing a transport topic we did it once a week for a term. The only plausible explanation is that they want to rob this disabled little girl of her 1:1 to boost their ratios for the other children. I just find that unbelievably callous (even if it wasn’t breaching all kinds of legislation and her ECHP)

Is that 1-1 funded solely for your daughter? Then if so I would contact the LEA who provided the funding because the school will be breaking the law. Using money the is your daughters specific to her needs to provide support to other children... it's your daughters money. That is so wrong I work in a school and if someone is 1:1 funded that 1:1 is not to work with any other children because they are not paying for her support

The ambulance excuse is rubbish. Any child could need an ambulance, and let's face it, she's less likely to break her leg than one of the other children.

You've got to keep pushing them. Her 1-1 is hers, employed to look after her. They shouldn't be going on trips without her. If they don't have enough staff then nobody should be going on the trip.

Sorry @Sleepyblueocean was trying to quote the original person who said that not your response.

They are discriminating against your dd due to her disability. I would make a formal complaint and follow the school's complaints procedure.

You also have other options. Disability discrimination can be dealt with via the send tribunal. If you don't get any look via the school I'd consider this route. It's not remotely acceptable how they are behaving. Does she have anything specific in her ehcp/provision regarding trips?

Where are they expecting your daughter to be for the day if not on the trip? She needs her 1-1 so she wouldn’t be able to go anyway and therefore someone else will need to be on the trip.

If he asking for a meeting with the head and the senco for them to go through their risk assessment with you step by step.

That school sounds appalling.

If you want to force things to get moving then you need to escalate this and copy in the people that LAs care about appeasing. You shouldn’t have to, but its sadly true.

On Monday morning your complaint letter to the Headteacher and Chair Of Governors needs to land and be simultaneously copied in to the following people:
Ofsted
SENDIST
Head of SEND services at your LA
Director of Childrens Services at your LA
Manager of the Team providing the medically trained TA (are they funded by continuing care? If so, copy them in too)
Chief Exec of your LA
Local Government Ombudsman
Vicky Ford MP (Parliamentary Under Secretary with responsibility for SEND)
Local papers

You won’t have official right of appeal to all those bodies at the same time. It doesn’t matter- include them anyway. The threat of them is what gets LAs moving.

You need to be crystal clear that your child is being discriminated against under the terms of the DDA. If the medically trained TA is specified as full time in your child’s EHCP but is being used to fulfil general staffing ratios then that funding is being misdirected illegally. Say that.

Threaten legal action if they do not rectify the situation immediately.

Don’t go on for pages- stick to 1-1.5 pages. They don’t need to know the ins and outs of the whole medical/educational history, but make sure you briefly outline the extent of your daughter’s needs and how vulnerable she is.

Refer to the guidance for school trips oinked to above. Quote the sections they are breaching.

Don’t get too emotional in it- stick to the facts and legalities, but absolutely do Include a short paragraph about the distress it causes your daughter to be discriminated against repeatedly in this way, and the additional pressure it puts on your family to have to keep having the same battle.

Hope that helps. I’m appalled for you.

They can't refuse as it's discrimination. They are required to make reasonable adjustments. They have funding to make this happen and from your post for 1:1
I would be quoting this statutory guidance to them:
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/803956/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions.pdf

My child has a different long term condition and her school have always been inclusive, however I regularly see in forums this isn't the case everywhere. It's so wrong to tell a child they can't go because they don't want the responsibility on a trip, the message they are giving out isn't great!
Schools being non inclusive like this has been in the papers etc a few times. Hence government brought out the above.

Absolutely appalling! I'm a teacher and I've taught in both main stream and special schools. I've been on plenty of school trips with pupils with additional needs and it's never been an issue.

There is no rational reason the school can't take your DC on a trip, especially because they already have a 1:1 support staff. A risk assessment needs to include your DC's needs, this is in no way an issue because a standard risk assessment is at least 3 pages long anyway. This school sounds horrible!

Speak to the head urgently, then formal complaint to the Head of governers if the head doesn't respond.

0None0 the alternative wasnt to cancel the trip for everyone. We get very clear guidance in schools to think about disabilities in the class when planning the trip - so you could have ruled out steep hill trips at the planning stage and gone to a different location or done a trip linked with a different topic that was accessible. The only exception here is if the disability changes in quality after the trip would reasonably have been set up. I wont go into detail but i work somewhere that excluded a child from a trip and it was taken higher and we were in the wrong. We have had lots of legal advice now and the only thing i cant remember is if asking a parent to attend is reasonable in a risk assessment but if it is you would expect to involve them in setting a date.

We had this - yr 6 residential trip and they wanted me to pick up ds each evening so no overnights.

In the end, ds' nurse visit school and reminded them of their legal obligation and after lots of meeting with me, suddenly worked out he could stay overnight and it was fine!

I am a Governor, and the parent of a disabled child. I also work with adults who have complex needs

Is her 1:1 a TA or a personal care assistant? If I were the COG at your school I would be asking serious questions about the reason that your child ha a 1:1 who isn't able to meet her needs. Feeding is a basis support need. Does she have an EHCP which provided the 1:1 funding?

I would ask what risk assessments have been completed and ask to see copies of these. I would also ask for an FOI of your daughters file to see exactly what training they have accessed.

@Holly60

I agree the school should take her. If they really won’t back down, I would go yourself. I know you say you can’t, but as an older lady to a younger one - my advice would be never put work before your child. Work won’t love you like your child does. It also doesn’t need you in the same way.

It's not work which prevents the OP going, it's other responsibilities related to the care of the same child.

She has explained clearly why she can't go, and the school shouldn't be relying on her to make the numbers work on the trip.

OP there is so much wrong here. You've been given great advice but I just want to add my voice to those saying that my tube-fed child has never been excluded from a school trip, including residentials. What they're doing is outrageous and discriminatory.

I work in a school and oversee medical provision for students. We recently took a student who is wheelchair bound, needs hoisting to use the loo and is tube fed albeit not in school on a day trip by coach three hours away. It really wasn't that difficult to organise so I can't see why your school are being so difficult. There was no way we wouldn't have taken this student as they'd have felt left out. The student had TA support all day and had a great time. You definitely need to pursue this with your school and go to governors if you're getting nowhere

"No member of staff is obliged to take responsibility for an individual with a condition they are not comfortable with"

But if they are employed as a 1:1 TA/PCA then they surely understand what the job entails, and if they are not happy, leave so the school can find someone else who is prepared to undertake basis needs.

Honestly I'd say you stop discriminating against my child right now or you will see this story in the newspaper shaming the school. I don't even think it's legal if paperwork is in place supporting she can go.

@ElfDragon

If school are trying to count your dd’s 1-1 for ratio purposes on a trip, I would be asking very specific questions about how the 1-1 is generally used during school time. It sounds as though the school are used to using the 1-1 as a general member of staff, and this is not what the 1-1 is funded for.

The school needs to set up the trip with the right adult/child ratio without using the 1-1, and not misappropriate the specially trained and funded 1-1.

I suspect the 1-1 is being used as a general TA by the school, and not specifically assigned to your dd even when at school.

The school is definitely not following the EHCP, and is disregarding it’s legal duties.

I agree with this absolutely

Sounds like there's even more going on here and your dd's 1:1 is being used as a TA by the school

@ 0None0 the child has a 1-1 who is medically trained. If the child can’t go on that trip, then the school needs to arrange one they can go on, or no-one goes.

Added to which, the school have given 4 different reasons why this child can’t go, so clearly it’s not really about the child’s needs but about their own need to discriminate against a child with disabilities.

OP first and foremost I would be telling the school that if they refuse to take your child on the trip then she will be attending school as normal so obviously her 1-1 will be there and not on the trip with the other children. Lack of ratios in that event is their problem to deal with, not yours and not your child’s, your child will be in school, as per their request.

Secondly I would speak to the chair of governors tomorrow and arrange a meeting ASAP with them, the head, and the senco. I would state that the desired outcome of this meeting will be that either your child attends the school trip, or there is no school trip at all.

Also, do you know where they are going? If it’s a particular venue I would contact them in advance of the meeting with head etc to enquire about their provision for children with disabilities, and I would ask if they would exclude a child with disabilities from their premises. If not, I would mention to them that one of their school parties is intending to do just that, and that in the event you go to the press they will likely be approached for comment.

No venue which receives payment is going to want to be named and shamed as a venue where the disabled are not allowed, so if they are prepared to speak out about the fact a child with disabilities has been disallowed from attending their venue by a school, that is going to look worse on the school. And if they agree the disabled child isn’t permitted in their venue or they have no provision, it is going to affect their business.

Just being tube fed outside of school wouldn’t need a 1:1 and nutrition companies aren’t that strict on deliveries. I presume your daughter has complex needs in addition to the feeding? You say she’s never had an ambulance from school, is this something she requires from home sometimes? It could be totally possible to require 1:1 at school where there is a lot of additional adult capacity and a safe environment but 2:1 on a school trip. It’s very understandable that you don’t want to list your child’s exact needs here. If the school can only manage 2:1 can that be put into her EHCP?