What happens when school starts proceedings against you for low attendance

[katalex]

I met with the deputy head in early January to discuss my year 11 son's low attendance (he hasn't been in since the beginning of September due to poor mental health) and how to get him back to school. I have been working with the SENCO on strategies since late September but I don't think he knew anything about this. He just treated me like I just couldn't be bothered to get my child to school, which couldn't be further from the truth.

We talked about a staggered return, which I agreed to try (even though we already tried this in October and it didn't work) but he said that they had already started proceedings against me for failing to carry out my legal duty to make sure my son attended school regularly. However, I haven't heard anything from the council yet. Are they so overloaded with referrals from schools that it takes over a month to contact a parent whose child hasn't been to school all year?

What should I expect when they do contact me? I have plenty of evidence that I can supply regarding all of the doctor's appointments, resort from the psychiatrist assessment and subsequent diagnosis, weekly therapy with a clinical psychologist since July plus emails and meetings with the SENCO and all the things we have tried. DS also has an Early Help worker. The school referred him to the county council back in September to provide some help to get him back to school. They have not contacted me so far. They also tried to refer him to the local health needs school but that request was denied. DS is going to try starting the staggered return tomorrow. Unless I've forgotten to list something here, I honestly don't know what else I could have done.

Any advice would be very helpful as I'm quite worried.

I've just tried to contact the education department at the LA but all the EWOs/EHOs? were busy. I left a message asking them to call me back.

@TankFlyBoss Thank you. Your advice has been helpful.

@UniversallyChallenged123 Sorry to hear about your DD. It's such a difficult situation and so exhausting having to deal with so many organisations and professionals and fight for your child's needs/rights. I have a full time job and I feel like I spend more time on this. Fortunately, we only have a few months left with these threats being issued. My eldest is 17 (18 next month) and hasn't been to school for 3 years due to severe school anxiety/phobia (unmet needs due to previously undiagnosed ADHD and autism - the school refused to believe it was possible as they are high ability/top sets and had become a master at masking). They said I was pandering to my child! They tried accessing college but only managed to cope for a couple of weeks so they left. They haven't been to school or college since and no one cares! The school fought me at every stage, refusing to provide the help that I requested and the college weren't much better. I'm so tired of this. I'm glad DS is my youngest. I wish you and your DD the best too.

@PenOrPencil That's good to know. I really hope we have a good outcome too after meeting with the EWO. It's so frustrating that schools don't understand how debilitating anxiety can be and how damaging it is to force them to go in when it causes them so much distress. They see it as the child making a choice and think that it will make them go in if they tell them how important it is to get their GCSEs. The kids know that and they want to get their education, it's just not an environment they can cope with. Even a GP told my eldest that their anxiety was 'just a bit of worry' and they should 'keep going to school anyway' because they only have 3 years left. He wouldn't refer to CAMHS for an autism assessment because apparently anyone can take a look at the criteria and decide that they're autistic! I hope your DD does well with the online school. I tried to get my DS to do online school for years 10 and 11 because I could see this coming but he insisted he wanted to be in school.
I could kick myself for not insisting.

Email the LA’s Director of Children’s Services.


Apply for an EHCNA for DC1 too. Unfortunately, s.19 provision only applies to compulsory school aged pupils so there’s no duty on the LA to provide anything without an EHCP. I think this is a case of one area of legislation not keeping pace with another and if there was a test case this would potentially change.

They're going to contact me tomorrow. If I don't get anywhere then I'll definitely email the director. I've found his email address.

DC1 already has an EHCP. unfortunately it's proving very difficult to persuade the LA that they need home tuition because apparently every child does best in school and home tuition is just a temporary measure. I had to pay their therapist to attend the review and write a report to explain why DC can't be in school. Hopefully the funding panel will agree.

Appeal DC1’s EHCP. Do you currently have the right of appeal? If not request an early review in order to try to get the right of appeal.

EOTAS does not necessarily have to temporary. DS1 has had EOTAS for a number of years now and will mostly likely never return to a setting.

DC1 already has an EHCP. unfortunately it's proving very difficult to persuade the LA that they need home tuition because apparently every child does best in school and home tuition is just a temporary measure. I had to pay their therapist to attend the review and write a report to explain why DC can't be in school. Hopefully the funding panel will agree.

The funding panel can try to disagree with evidence presented by your expert but don't take no for an answer, appeal and take to tribunal if necessary.

As JustKeepBuilding says long term EOTAS is possible if there is no school that can meet needs. My eldest had EOTAS for 6 years, he's now back in a setting at his choice and with his needs met.

My youngest is on a similar long term arrangement.

If you have an expert stating that they can't be in school for mental health reasons it is highly unlikely that a tribunal would force a school unless there is compelling evidence that the expert is wrong.

If you use facebook this group is quite useful - EOTAS / EOTIS / Education Personal Budget Support

Just wanted to say thanks for this thread and all the advice on it. My ASD daughter (Y11) hasn’t been able to go to school since February due to mental health problems, she attempted suicide in June and the school EWO threatened me with fines 5 weeks later, causing a return to suicidal thoughts. I had to give up work and find a job I can do (mostly) from home, ensure I have 24/7 care for my daughter while working full time, I’m a single parent so need to work while trying to navigate through my daughter’s MH, keep the school off our back, and now worry about the added pressure of potential prosecution. And try to prepare her for her GCSEs next spring… all of which is a full time job in itself!

I wish I’d looked on here back in March. We haven’t heard from our LA so not sure they are even aware, and the school and CAMHS just have a robotic “re-integration timetable” mantra which completely disregards the fact that it was forcing her to go to school that made her ill in the beginning. I will be taking the advice on this thread and emailing the director of children’s services to see if I can get her an alternative provision. Online school would have been very useful, she got on well with that during lockdown, but might be too late for it now she’s missed half of year 10.

The info on this page has been very helpful, thanks.

@user1499421397 it is not too late. As well as pursuing medical needs tuition, request an EHCNA. EHCPs can continue until 25, or 26 in some cases.

I tried to get an EHCP a couple of years ago precisely to protect my daughter in this situation which was inevitable, we went to tribunal and the school SEN department were witnesses for the LA. The panel decided against us because the SENco told them they could meet her needs without one.

They then applied for an ECHNA in May this year 🙄 but the request was rejected. I haven’t got the time or energy to fight that battle on top of everything else (which is what they want, I know). Just want her to get out of the system next year with some GCSEs so she can get on with her life.

As someone else said in this thread, the money they spent on trying not to help must have been considerable, it was me against a barrister. If they’d used that to actually help my daughter could very well be in a much better place today.

@JustKeepBuilding should have tagged!

If you are still within the appeal window do appeal. Or make another EHCNA request if you aren’t. An EHCP can provide far more support (including therapies and other MH support) that DD wouldn’t otherwise receive.

Can anyone tell me, when would a school need to inform the LA that a child hasn’t been in school? Would it be 15 days after she last was physically in school, 15 days after they stopped sending work home for her or 15 days after absences started being reported as unauthorised?

The LA’s duty under s19 begins as soon as it becomes clear 15 days will be missed. This applies whether the school inform the LA or not (although obviously to receive it someone has to raise the need for it). Those days don’t need to have already been missed or consecutive. The school sending work home isn’t a suitable, full-time education and doesn’t discharge the LA’s duty. If DD can’t attend due to her MH the absences should be authorised and you should challenge them if they aren’t, but them not being authorised doesn’t necessary relieve the LA of their duty.

@JustKeepBuilding Thanks, are the school supposed to inform the LA or do they have an obligation to?

Schools should monitor attendance and follow LA practices on informing the LA about pupils not attending regularly, missing 10+ days without permission or because of illness etc.

Thank you. Our school only seem to follow guidance and practices when it suits them.

Their latest tactic is to get a clinical psychologist from CAMHS to pass on messages to me saying if she homeschools she can still take her exams there. It’s possible they mean it but is also possible that they’re trying to trick me into deregistering. But they’re certainly not following the rules.

I don’t understand why they’re so inflexible, they act as if EOTAS doesn’t exist.

@user1499421397 dont agree to this plan without speaking to a senior officer in your LA “inclusion team” (or whatever your area has called it). “Off rolling is completely disallowed and the LA will not want to let schools do it, so if the LA is involved in a plan to learn at home but take exams at school you are more likely to be better protected or to get a better arrangement

My Y10 daughter has only been in school 3 days this term. We're in the usual CAMHS and EHCP refusal situation.

Don’t allow the school to off-roll (even if the LA support them, some do). That is not what you want/need. If you deregister and EHE it is easier for professionals to sweep DD’s needs under the carpet. Crudely, being on the school’s roll means you are someone’s ‘problem’. Also, by EHE the LA will say you are making suitable alternative arrangements thereby relieving them of their duty. Instead, you want medical needs tuition under s19 of the Education Act 1996.

Contact the Director of Children’s Services directly requesting provision - IPSEA has a model letter you can use. If that fails email again threatening judicial review. Then if that fails contact SOSSEN for help with a pre-action letter. Alongside this, request another EHCNA (IPSEA has a model letter for this too) and appeal if refused.

@HairyKitty I’m not agreeing to the plan, I don’t trust them.

@JustKeepBuilding thank you

Hi @JustKeepBuilding, just wanted to thank you again. I took your advice, didn’t deregister and I sent the letter to the LA.

Today we went to the medical education service’s ‘school’ and now my daughter is excited to start there after half term.

She loves learning but just couldn’t cope with everything else so she’s genuinely excited to get back on track. We were lost and now we both feel such relief from going there today, meeting them, seeing what they do and seeing the kids in there.

There’s a sense of calm that’s been missing for such a long time.

Reading this thread and asking questions that you answered got us to this point. Honestly can’t thank you enough, I know it’s going to be ok now xx

@megletthesecond follow the advice in this thread!