Year 13 - advice please

[Pud2]

My friend son has missed a lot of Y13 due to illness. School agreed a while ago he could repeat the year and take A levels next summer. They’ve now just changed their mind. He has anEHCP and they have now decided they can’t meet his needs (ASD). How can they fight this, especially as he will soon be 18 so not statutory school age?

This is tricky. Although they have an obligation to meet his needs while he is currently a pupil, I'm under the impression that agreeing to allow a student to stay on for an extra year is at the school's discretion.

This thread might be useful to read, although it is from 7 years ago.

Thank you TheFirstohn. That is useful. It’s so difficult to know what to do as the school clearly can’t meet his needs - he’s been absent most of the year and nothing seems to have been done about it. It’s just a bit late to chuck him out.

It’s just a bit late to chuck him out.
And unfair to withdraw an offer of repeating Y13, especially at this point in the year.

Hi - I am the poster from the thread TheFirst linked to.

Your friend needs to contact the LA as their DS has an EHCP and they are responsible for securing the educational provision in it. Presumably the ‘outcomes’ on the EHCP won’t have been met if their DS hasn’t completed his A levels. The fact that the DS will not be ‘statutory school age’ does not matter; provision in an EHCP can go up to age 25.

You say that the school say they can’t meet his needs - and the fact he’s been absent for most of the year (mental health?) confirms this. Actually it might show that their isn’t enough support for him at the school - and his EHCP should be amended to give him more support. The LA would have to fund this - as well as the extra year - they have a legal duty to meet his SEN til he is 25 (unless he’s at uni or gets a job) My DD in Y9 has ASD and an EHCP and has hardly been in school this academic year because of anxiety. She is in mainstream and the LA are funding a full time TA to hopefully reintegrate her.

Things were rather different for my DS who didn’t have an EHCP/Statement. The LA didn’t get involved. We went to Tribunal and the school were found to have discriminated against my DS for failure to make reasonable adjustments. However, the Tribunal said they didn’t have the power to order the school allow DS to do a ‘proper’ Y14. So DS remained not on roll, just going in for 6 hours a week and had no SEN support. Despite that, with the help of tutors, he got his 3 A levels and a university place.

That’s great news chives22. Well done to you and your ds. Sounds like you did your very best for him.