Raising a formal complaint at school

[Ricecakesaremyjam]

My sons school are acting unlawfully towards him and have been for some time. All attempts to ask the headteacher SENCO to do their legal duty by my son are brushed off. I am literally gaslit every time I speak to her.
I am about to raise a formal complaint to the governing body but I’m scared 😂 will the school hate me and my kids forever? I
know I need to do it and I’m being stupid but I have a horrible habit of second guessing myself! Thanks x

@AmIHumanOrAmIAYeti as per the government’s EHE guidance, DC who are flexischooled still get a full-time education. If DN is flexischooled, legally speaking, DN would be legally classed as receiving a full-time education, just not all in school. Some in school, some otherwise than at/in school and the remaining amount flexischooling. If DN isn’t getting a full-time education then it wouldn’t be called flexischooling. It would be a part-time education - just provided across different settings, which would still be lawful if full-time education in any form wouldn’t be appropriate. In the OP’s case, her LA would have a very difficult time arguing that in law since other provision (and not just academic provision - therapeutic, child-led provision can be provided) to provide a full-time education has not been considered.

You mentioned your mother wouldn’t be advocating for that arrangement… so I presumed DM had care of DN. If that isn’t the case, DM wouldn’t have a say in it regardless of if she agreed or not.

Ultimately it is the LA who is responsible for ensuring provision detailed, specified and quantified in F of the EHCP is provided, and it can be enforced via legal proceedings if necessary. As LAs have been repeatedly shown, lack of resources, staffing or funding are not lawful excuses for breaching section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014. When faced with enforcement action, LAs can and do fund the 1:1 at a higher rate, sometimes a much higher rate.

DSis and DN live next door to my parents. Bit daft to have an expert next door and not use their expertise.

They seem to call it flexi-schooling here. 🤷🏻‍♀️ But whatever he is getting has been through considered negotiation with the (smal
village primary) school and the LA (with mum in attendance as she knows the regulations inside out (she is regularly an expert witness in tribunals). There has been some give and take over the last 3 years, I’m sure. But there has never been a blow up.

@Swiftie1878 No I’m not. We will be lucky to go away on a caravan weekend this year as I have had to leave work to facilitate him only being allowed to go to school 2hrs a day, so moneys tight.

Agree. Having read some of the OP’s other posts it’s the LA she needs to be working with. Sounds like the escalating behaviour at school is becoming unmanageable now so alternative arrangements need to be sorted.

Some of the posts here are absolutely appalling in true loving MN style 🙄.

The child isn't a bloody ape who needs a plastic spoon and bowl and a cage and all will be ok ffs.

These specialist places can be really appalling, they are often privately run and out of the same watchful eye of a mainstream. We've had recent
programmes on TV with under cover filming in such places. They can be a shit show.

Teachers are up against it right now. No one is blaming teachers. OP has funding allocated, which the school receive, unless I'm mistaken, and what are they doing with that? It sounds like NOT proportionate support and intervention to me.

Her child is academically capable. She simply wants more than what's being offered. And so she should.

The SEN board sounds better than here OP. I don't know enough about progressing this.

I did consult a SEN lawyer for a free 20 minutes. They were very helpful. But it's only 20 minutes.

Agree SEN board likely to be better than AIBU.

@AmIHumanOrAmIAYeti that might be what the LA and school are calling it, but it doesn’t mean it legally is. It isn’t, as per the government’s EHE guidance.

BTW, I know flexischooling isn’t full-time EHE, but it is covered it the EHE guidance.

I’m not in England.

Legally a child cannot be denied a place in a mainstream school because they feel they are unsuitable.
The school cannot offer her a place at a specialist school, only the LA can.
This is the school trying to force her hand.
However, if the LA are agreeable to a change of placement to a PMLD school I would give that serious thought, they won't do this lightly and the special school will be far better placed to meet OP's child's needs.
With PMLD particularly, the physical environment and therapies on site at a special setting are likely o have a massive positive impact.

@AmIHumanOrAmIAYeti then SEN law where you are is different. OP is in England and therefore action by the school/LA/her needs to be based on English SEN law.

I think you are referring to residential settings.
I have worked in and visited numerous special schools and my son attends one. They bear no resemblance to what you are describing
In a PMLD school they will have onsite speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, specialist activities such as rebound therapy, often a hydrotherapy pool
Not to mention staff who are highly experienced in supporting PMLD learners.

Parents are not awarded 1:1 for their children. The child is assessed by professionals and the provision is to meet the child's educational needs. Funding is a separate process between the school and the LA.

The OP had given up her job, but also how could she take a school hours 1:1 job when her child only attends 2 hours a day and has no other provision in place?

Which is the actual point of the thread; getting alternative provision in place so that he can have a full-time education. And apparently the LA has already given funds to the school to arrange the alternative provision, on top of whatever funding they have for the school 1:1.

Not all the scandals in independent SS have been residential placements, and some of those that have been offer day placements as well. Just like with other things, some are brilliant and some are not.

Oh wow! If you aren’t that person, then it seems like this 2 hours per day of schooling is a bit of a ‘thing’!
Have you checked to guidance given with the EHCP? Does it suggest what your child is able to cope with (in terms of hours etc)?

@Swiftie1878 sadly, it isn’t uncommon for DC to be unlawfully, informally excluded. OP’s DS is by no means the only one.

Do you personally know this mother and child as it sounds like you are a parent or staff member at the school because of your remarks? You shouldn’t be contributing to this thread if so as it is a conflict of interest.

Agree that all schools are different but what is missing here is the sense from the OP about what school she feels would be right for her DC. For me the priority should be the OP finding 1 or 2 schools which definitely can meet need and then going through the various steps needed to get them named on the EHCP.

Complaining to the current school governors just seems like a waste of time if the OP has accepted they are unlikely to be able to meet need.

Thankyou for the clarification.

I understand OP visited and didn't like what she saw. I can see why a school would refer anywhere in order to get rid. I can actually understand that and it is going to get worse probably with the resource problem we have.

Maybe this in between provision that OP wants and it looks like resources funded for, is better for her child. There can be real disadvantages for some imo being in certain specialist places. And mainstream in it's current form isn't right either.

The mentality of- well behaved conformists here and naughty apes over here - exactly as posts often feel on these threads, is not truly in touch with the nuances here of each individual.

@MotherJessAndKittens I guarantee this poster doesn’t know me because if they did, they would know 100% my sons presentation doesn’t fit with a PMLD school, and that my only interest is in him being educated in the correct environment whether that was mainstream, PMLD, high coin etc etc
That poster has clearly read a historical thread where I mentioned being SIGNPOSTED by current school to amongst other places a PMLD school and I was alarmed they considered this suitable and, with my son being very young and this being my first experience of navigating the school SEN system, was asking advice as to whether this can be enforced in any way even if I disagree it’s the right environment for him.
That poster, for God knows what reason, has taken what she wants to from that thread and gone for me on this one.

@Heronwatcher that is something the OP has posted about on other threads. As I understand it, this thread is about AP whilst she goes through the process of securing another school placement. It doesn’t have to be one or the other.

@Ricecakesaremyjam, I think you do need to look at an alternative school. From what you have said about your son a placement within a unit attached to a mainstream school could work well for him. You may not have found them a good fit when visiting but they are often much quiter then a main classroom and will adjust the level of teaching for individual students.

I may only have experience of these units at high school level but they do have a total mix of students. They do access the main school site and some students get integrated back into the main school if appropriate. These students do get the opportunity to sit exams when they can as well.

And while you could try and push the current school to provide better/more provision in the mean time. It sounds like they really don't want to and you probably won't get anywhere with them. I concentrate your energy on looking for a more suitable alternative as soon as possible.

I want them to use his funding to put in place AP for the time he is not in school.

Is’t that the LAs responsibility rather than the schools? How would the school pay for the TA that has to support your child while in school if they spent the money on AP? It’s likely that they have to employ the TA for more than 2 hours a day because no one would take the job otherwise.