to think of suing LA for SEN school fees when they eventually give DC an ECHP?

[ehcpnightmares]

DC 13 in state school which is not going well at all
He definitely meets criteria for EHCP but LA refusing to assess (we have appealed)
We can pay school fees for a couple of years (if we can find one that fits him with a place)
Hopefully in the future LA will pay school fees, but wondering if we'd be able to reclaim the fees for the next year, given they had no good reason to delay ECHNA?

They don’t have enough money. You’d just be taking it from other children.

@HeddaGarbled But why should the 'other children' have the resources and not my DC?

I know LAs have no money and that's likely why they are stalling on EHCPs but that's not really DC's problem. Surely the LA / Government / Voters in UK need to fix that problem rather than just squeezing support for disabled children?

Agreed. And there is a huge waiting list for assessments.

When you say 'not going well at all', what do you mean?

Why are they refusing to assess ?

You won’t get the money you spend back. The LA can argue that is wasn’t necessary for you to spend it.

I have been there (not trying to get money back), done that, had the t shirt so long that it’s now relegated to cleaning rags as it was so worn out.

we paid for specialist preschool, private tutors, plus a year of specialist SN school. As well as the private assessments, and the legal costs. Plus having to move areas and rent. No chance of getting any of it back. BUT we won. It was a much longer fight that it should have been. But we won. And dd has been in specialist SN provision ever since. She started age 6, and is now on her last term, age 18. We weathered secondary transition, as well as post 16. It has cost the LA a fortune in fees (which is, of course, why they resisted so hard), and it has been worth every penny. Dd is looking at a considerably brighter future, with a chance of a fulfilling life.

we are now sadly awaiting college funding decisions 😬😬🤞

The LAs can’t “fix that problem”. Agree, voters and government could. They won’t though. They don’t care enough, and there’s not enough of you to make it an election changer. Sorry, I know it’s shit ☹️

Sometimes you just need to accept that the rules are there for everyone . Your son didn't meet the criteria in the rules. My heart goes out to you...obviously you've not been in this position before and feel vengeful.

Oh god, I HATE the ‘taking it from other children’ argument. I was told that so many times. Not my, or my child’s problem. I was told it face to face in a professional meeting once, and actually had the presence of mind to ask them why the ‘other’ child deserved it more. Of course there wasn’t an answer.

fight for the EHCP, and make sure it is watertight with provisions properly outlined with no wriggle room. No woolly descriptions, no vague provisions. Get the LA to kick it back further up the line if they cannot meet your dc’s legally (by the time it’s on an EHCP) described needs.

Oh, to be so naive again.

it is far more likely (sadly) that the OP’s dc does meet criteria, and the LA are acting unlawfully in refusing to assess. And that, once the appeal is heard, the assessment will go ahead.

it’s just a time wasting exercise. Hoping to push it into another financial year (and hopefully another after that), to delay the point where funding needs has to happen. It is truly despicable.

What type of school are you thinking of sending him to? If it's just a normal independent school then there's no hope of them paying fees. If you mean you are looking into paying for a special independent school, then you are looking at upward of £56k a year with no guarantee of reimbursement.

Getting an EHCP usually means that they will offer funded one to one support in his current school as a starting point.

Your best course of action is likely to be in making sure the appeal is lodged quickly and you comply with all the tribunal rules. Do you have support in the Tribunal case? It could really help.

An experienced advisor could also check if there is mileage in going to the LGO... This would only apply if your child is currently out of education and the LA are not making suitable alternative provision. The LGO can make some smallish financial awards ... But best take advice if you have a tribunal appeal. IPSEA or SOS!SEN might be useful.

Also I meant to say that I've never found a SEN school yet that accepts privately funded students. We have ended up moving house several times to get into special schools and move to a better LA.

The thing to bear in mind is that the legal entitlement is to ‘a suitable education’.

you have to prove that the current school is not a suitable placement, if you are wanting to move your dc, and without the school cooperating and agreeing they cannot meet needs, then that is quite a hurdle to clear. It is difficult to get an independent school named on an EHCP.

You just have to take my word for it that he does meet the criteria, they will be forced to assess.

@ThreeImaginaryBoys what difference does it make to this question why it's not going well in current school. SENCO/CAMHS/OT say it's not going well. Specifics don't really matter here

@ExtraOnions they are refusing to assess for some bullshit reason that the tribunal will over turn, next year probably at this rate. I take it you have never had to apply for an EHCP?

@ElfDragon thanks for your reply. Glad things went well for your daughter. Good luck for college fees

@Niceseasidetown You're an expert on SEND law and also on my son's case?

@Niceseasidetown you may mean well but I don't think you should be advising here. Do you know how the statutory assessment and appeal system works? This is very likely not just a case of a "vengeful" parent who wants a free ticket to Eton for her child ;)

My dad’s (specialist, independent) preschool did, as did her first SN (again, independent) school.

her current school (independent SN) has in the past accepted self funded pupils, although we were lucky enough to get it named on EHCP without a fight when moving from the first school. I don’t know whether there are currently any self funded pupils (although one pupil who I know was self funded in the past is still there - unsure whether still self funded, I know they had to appeal the (then) Statement)

@ehcpnightmares I asked because it may be that children with greater need are being prioritised. No sinister reason behind the question. You've now mentioned SENCO, CAMHS and OT which gives context.

Good luck with what is a long and difficult process.

@ElfDragon the SENCO has said in meetings that the school don't have the specialist skills and my son's education is not progressing. What other evidence do LA need?

Yanbu to think it but sadly you are unlikely to get it.
All the time you are appealling- decision to assess and then probably further down the line the provision and named placement, then its considered you are pursuing your legal rights and there is no other recourse during this time. Once appeals are done your can put in a complaint to LA, then when they reply say you arent happy and escalate to stage 2 complaint. Only then you can complain to LGO who, if find in your favour, will award between£200-£600 per month for missed education EXCLUDING the time during which you were appealling( appeal procedures take about a year). So if your child had zero education for a year whilst you were going through appeal procedure as no school was named or alternative provision offered then your child gets zero compensation for that year of no education. So LA are quids in by delaying by refusing to assess or failing their statutory duties to provide any education- its actually in their best financial interests to do so.
There is over a 90% chance you will win at appeal, not because tribunals are sympatheic to parents but because they apply the law - LAs will routinely attempt to avoid their statutory duties leaving parents no option but to appeal.

I’m a long time out of the initial assessment process, so I’m lot sure I’m best placed to advise.

id say, though, that you need it in writing that the school cannot meet needs, and probably a fair amount of documented evidence of failure. I’d assume that ‘failure to progress’ is as hard a benchmark to prove as it was when my dd was going through assessment. Not much weight was given to ‘potential’. We had to prove that the provision we were asking for did work, while simultaneously proving that the provision the LA wanted didn’t work. We had to evidence (via own records, school reports, and ultimately by cross referencing findings discrepancies between LA ed psych assessment (in LA preferred provision) and LA ed psych assessment (at home/with tutors), and private ed psych report - time consuming and costly, but ultimately the differences in the 2 LA ed psych reports was what swung it for us.

@Runnerduck34 omg that's horrific. Just months ago I would never have believed how barbaric this would all be.

Again I'd really, strongly advise getting specialist help. First appeal is against refusal to assess, but as others have said, prepare for the long haul :(
I'm sorry you have to fight so hard. A good support org might be able to give you advice that haß the effect of scaring off the LA from further stalling tactics, you never know (ok maybe not but we can hope...)

Which LA?

I should add my DD was same age as your DC when we started the process, she has autism which was undiagnosed at the time,shes now on the waiting list for ADHD assessment too.
As PP say if you want to change type of setting ideally you need to get the current school to say it cant meet needs.
To do this they need to have tried lots of different strategies of support and , in area,taken the case to the local inclusion forum (LIFT) for advice.
Depending on your sons needs I would recommend getting an ocuupational therapy and Speech and language report, at first i wasnt sure these were necessary but it was highly recommended to me to get them and they were an eye opener of my daughters needs which really helped as evidence.
Keeps records of all emails to school, diary of daily difficulties etc.
Go to IPSEA and SOSSEN and special needs jungle websites. They have a lot of advice and IPSEA has fantastic template letters you can use. phone SOSSEN and/ or IPSEA for advice, its a bit like phoning to get a GPs appt ,phone the second they open, but its worth it.
Look up local charities or support groups that can support you.
We won at Education Otherwise Than At School ( EOTAS) at tribunal, we are ,now going through phase transfer/ annual review process , it feels never ending and its stressful but it is worth it.
Good luck.

@Runnerduck34 I don't think that there is any legal basis behind that award.

OP I would, things won't change unless the LAs think there could be legal action over their duty to not implement the law.

Sadly, a senco saying this will sadly count for very little (I am a senco) and they will want huge amounts of evidence before doing anything at all. Good luck with it though. Have you sought advice from IPSEA?