SEN: Council EHCP lady - aibu to complain to the director of children’s services and is it a bad idea?

[Fern1978]

The council ehcp coordinator is supposed to liaise with schools for us. So far, she has told me School A is full (when it wasn’t) and School B was also full (when they had offered DS a place in the Sen provision.

I have asked her for a copy of documentation from the schools and she has been reluctant to hand over any.

A Specialist school have given the council a yay or nay today. They won’t tell me if they have offered a place. They’ve told me to get in touch with the council. The council contact just seems to withhold information or mislead me.

I’m now in a position where I have no confidence that what I am being told is the truth and there is no transparency whatsoever.

aibu to complain to the director of children’s services? Will I regret it, given that she is meant to be my Ehcp contact for both my darling sons?

Ime, it’s very rare that you can ever have any confidence any LA officer in the SEN division is ever telling the truth! That is why it’s always best to

1. keep telephone conversations to a minimum, such as “Did you receive the copy I sent you…..?”, and always keep contemporaneous notes. Send them a copy and ask for comments if they disagree within 10 working days.
2. Preferably use email, to generate a paper trail
3. Take a witness to all meetings, to take notes, send a copy to all attendees and ask for comments, if they disagree within 10 days
4. Send all letters, etc by signed for delivery
5. As in this instance, seek a subject access request from LA on all info on DC
6. When you need to complain, make it to the head of relevant service and the Monitoring Officer (it’s their job to make sure the LA obeys the law) - it will filter down to the relevant person
7. Always be firm on DC’s behalf, but appear reasonable

I have never cared, if a key person objected to being complained about, so long as it was justified - ie they are acting contrary to SEN code of Practice, the law, etc.

Definitely complain.

Look at IPSEA, they have some great model letters which you can adapt to lodge a complaint with the director of children’s services.
I also agree with requesting a SAR to see whether any schools have actually been consulted.

If you use Facebook then look up your LA plus EHCP, hopefully you’ll find a local group and see that you are far from alone in this situation.

You won’t feel regret if you complain. SEN services are so stretched at the moment that those who shout the loudest are most likely to get the help needed.

Do you have an appeal window open?

Good luck 🤞

I second communicating in writing and following up any verbal conversations with emails so you have a paper trail should you need it.

Unless the school is wholly independent the LA must name your preferred placement unless the LA can prove:
-The setting is unsuitable for the age, ability, aptitude or special educational needs (“SEN”) of the child or young person; or
-The attendance of the child or young person would be incompatible with the provision of efficient education for others; or
-The attendance of the child or young person would be incompatible with the efficient use of resources.

Unless the school is wholly independent on its own being ‘full’ is not enough of a reason to refuse to name your preference. The LA has to prove the school is so full admitting DC is incompatible, which is a higher bar many LAs claim. Unless the school is wholly independent the LA can, and must, name the school regardless of the school’s objections unless the LA can prove one of the reasons I posted above.

Email the Director of Children’s Services reminding them of the above and pushing them to finalise the EHCP (going back and forth rarely works). If they are in breach of the statutory timescales remind them of that too.