Children moving to new schools due to VAT changes

[Popcorntv]

Hi all,

Clumsy title! I wanted to start a tread for those whose children are moving schools because independent education is no longer an option. The change hasn’t forced our hand quite yet but has reopened the conversation on school - DH never wanted DCs to go private as he had a miserable time at this very prestigious boys’ school - but I won out originally…

i can find lots of chats on here and FB about people threatening to leave but very little for people who really are making the change!

Now we are trying to move both DCs. We are in London. DC2 should get a place for Y6 in our local primary (started there - wish we’d never moved them!). DC1 is going into Y9 and finding a place is a bit of a dark art. No info at the moment due to schools managing the admissions and being on holiday. Local chat suggests it may be very difficult to find her a place…!

We paid privately for his first ASD assessment, his second ASD assessment his ADHD assessment and his two cognitive assessments.

he was in a state pre-school that was the feeder school to his local primary and on the same premises. The manager of the pre school said to us once ; 'face it, he's weird'. That was the day we pulled him out and sent him to the pre-prep of our local indy.

We are in a very rural area and in a very economically deprived area. The local schools were mostly in special measures (and 10 years on have mostly pulled out of special measures to be rated 'good', which is great). In my local ASD and SEN support groups there has been a fairly constant removal from the state schools in favour of home schooling. So no, we did not consider our local schools (although we did briefly when DS was first diagnosed consider moving to where my SIL lives as she has had a much better experience with her youngest DD). We found a solution- very early on- that worked for us brilliantly. A solution we were happy with. We have made several financial decisions including downsizing which I won't go into because I am sure people will tell me those were crap decisions as well.

The point is- that the VAT will impact us. It will. There is no getting around it. That was basically my original point. And that the 'concessions' are really not wide enough for us to benefit in any way. And we are hardly alone in that.

There are many lovely send schools doing amazing things with students of all abilities, but good luck getting a place even if you successfully navigate the EHCP process in the face of blatant bureaucratic obstructionism. In my area they are rarer than hens teeth and usually only come after years and years of failed placements and all the trauma that can entail for the child and their family. Jog on over to the send boards and count how many posters are home educating out of desperation- many would love a place for their child, many were in schools that openly agree they are unable to meet child’s needs. The system is utterly broken and also utterly inconsistent from region to region, so I totally believe that this parent was communicated an iq threshold that might or might not have been a real thing - In my area parents are frequently misled and sometimes outright lied to. Please save your ‘shoulda, woulda, coulda’ dismissiveness - the journey of educating a send child is a minefield, and for every send parent who has made the system work for their child I can point you in the direction of dozens more who are being let down.

Thanks for your condescending message @Labraradabrador. I worked in a special school for many years and understand the challenges that families face.

If you truly understand the challenges then I would expect a bit more compassion rather than glibly taking a parent to task for ‘not giving the state an opportunity’. I have seen a lot of what the state system does for a send child when given the opportunity, and 9 times out of 10 it is woefully inadequate. Labour claimed that send children in private education would be insulated from the impact of VAT, but really what they meant was local authorities wouldn’t be on the hook for VAT on the rare occasion when they are forced to meet their obligations to children and stump up for the private placement they require.

Shame that experience doesn't stop you coming on here and being a cow to these families.

Most of us parents of DC with SEN do not have the luxury of considering private education. It is still beyond the financial circumstances of the majority of families. It must be difficult for those DC who may have to move school but they are a tiny, tiny minority of SEN children overall. Personally I would like to see any money raised from VAT on private school fees being spent on improving SEND provision overall, though I doubt there will be any detailed commitment.

For the poster in Brighton above, I don't know about that area specifically but in general I would suggest the start of Year 3 is the best time to move as this is when the infant class size cap is lifted so spaces may become available.

My daughter's best friend is moving from their private London secondary to state (Year 10) because of the VAT hike. I'm sure she's not the only one. I'm seriously considering it, but because they're in Year 10 I'm worried about GCSEs and moving at this stage.

Good luck to everyone, I feel for you re this crappy policy

I hope you get the places you're after

At this stage, are they not liable for the whole autumn term's fees for the indie, not just the deposits?

We are moving post year 11 to minimise disruption for GCSEs.

I read another thread on here earlier about sixth form and struggling to get a place and the OP on that thread said she had been told informally it was due to children moving from private schools.

It's such shit timing. I am actually flabbergasted that Labour is implementing the policy in this way. Any idea that there are good intentions behind it are just nonsense. It's purely ideological.

We have now received the confirmed fee rise and it’s worse than I’d been led to believe by the head. In an additional kick that you couldn’t make up (but I guess it’s the school staff returning post August BH) we within the same hour got another email confirming no place for DC2 but they’ve been added to waiting lists.

A lot of people who previously had their heads in the sand are going to get a shock I think

£20k a year is very similar to state special, and way under independent special (who are price gouging bastards), so it would be well worth an EHCP application, depending on your LA. At some point the actual and physic costs of fighting some LAs will be more than the £100 a week extra though.

So hold up. Those parents struggling to get the SEND education that their kids need - that is costed at a shortfall of £1 to £2 billion - when did you lot set up a thread a day complaining about that? Funny how you notice now.

And don't want the govt to raise £1.5 bn from the richest income deciles.

Um.

So DS is about to go into Year 10 and the waiting list for an EHCP is around 4 years.

So that works. In addition, I'm not sure it has been made clear- the whole entire process of EHCPs are not entirely free. They cost the public purse a whole shit ton of money.

But yeah... let;s all of us private school parents just opt into the state system. For free to us.

Rock on.

@DelphiniumBlue if a school has a sixth form, then their existing pupils almost always take priority in that sixth form provided they meet the criteria. Given the school being discussed was a state grammar, it’s likely most pupils will meet the criteria and that spaces for external candidates are largely available because pupils have left (possibly to pursue a levels not offered by the grammar, or specific BTECs etc)

OK, @SnappingAtHeels, I'm not sure why you're so aggro with other parents of kids with special needs. There's nothing wrong with everyone who needs it getting good state provision. It's not my fault that the system fails lots of kids. But you're determined that it won't work for yours, so I'll leave you to it.

@Popcorntv presumably your son has a place at the indie for this term anyway as you’d have to give notice so you have some time to plan

The waiting lists for EHCPs are not 4 years.

Once an EHCP needs assessment application is made (and it can be a parental application) it should be a 20 week process from start to finish. The LA may fail.on these timings; I found that a well written letter to our MP moved things on very swiftly once our child's needs assessment went over the 20 week mark and within a month the EP had assessed and the EHCP was issued.

I think because EHCP and state based SEN support are not something you have actual forst hand experience of @SnappingAtHeels you are getting some things confused.

An EP doesn't decide if a child is eligible for a specialist placement, the schools themselves decide when they get sent the child's EHCP. They will let the LA know if they can meet needs or not.

Im sorry you are having to change schools for your child. That will be a big blow for you all. I suggest going down the EHCP route anyway as a child or young person will be supported by an EHCP by the age of 25 and it sounds like your child's needs definitely require an EHCP. It also sounds like you have plenty of documentation to support your application.

Once you have DLA (middle or higher rate care) and and EHCP you may be eligible for other support too...such as short breaks allowance. Every little helps x

Mine was assessed and awarded an EHCP in 6 months last year. This included going to tribunal application. Assessment to delivery took 9 weeks.

My DC has a much higher than average academic ability and still went to specialist provision because of SEND needs - funded by an EHCP

Sorry to derail - how do you do this exactly? Would love for my SEND child to attend a local private school, has an ECHP, but we haven't a chance in hell of affording the fees. I didn't realise you could opt to send them to private?!

@brightyellowflower - you can't simply opt to send your child with an EHCP to private provision unless you are paying the fees yourself. For the local authority to fund the place they have to agree that it is the only suitable provision.

Mine was assessed and awarded an EHCP in 6 months last year. This included going to tribunal application. Assessment to delivery took 9 weeks.

It was established on another thread you did not. You got a refusal to assess in May. LA conceded October. Draft issued December. Finalised in January. So more than 6 months from initial EHCNA request to finalised EHCP.

@brightyellowflower many parents have to appeal to get SS &/or independent placements named in section I.