Appeal for ASD son to be at same school as ASD/ADHD EHCP brother

[Mcsh1977]

I would love some advice please on appealing for my youngest son to be at the same school as my eldest. I will try to keep it short and concise (!)

DS2 has an ASD diagnosis, is really struggling emotionally and mentally post covid and is reasonably close to refusing to go to school on some days. He is very close to his brother, they are each others best friends. DS1 has an EHCP for ASD & ADHD, attends a local school (not catchment) that he is very happy and settled in. We applied for DS2 to go to that same school, put a catchment school (which is very popular) 2nd and the closest school (not catchment, but actually only 650m away) 3rd. Unfortunately we didn't get any of these. Instead he's been given a place in a school which is in a different part of town.
DS1 is very nervous about starting secondary school and is really only willing to go to the same school as his brother. We could have possibly persuaded him into the other schools on our list because a) they are close and b) many of his friends from primary school are going. He will refuse to go to the school he's been allocated.

I am so sad and worried about how this will affect his mental health and general well being, I feel sick just thinking about it. To be honest if we don't get in to his preferred school, I will have to give up work and home school.

This is also having a detrimental affect on his brother, who has been asking his teachers at school how he can get his brother in - bless him.

We will therefore need to appeal. We have his diagnosis letter, his primary senco is happy to write a statement. I'm considering paying for a psych assessment on how this would effect him. We also have to take his brother to school and will need to take him to the different school, as there is no way he can walk, get 2 buses and walk some more to get to the allocated school, he just couldn't cope with that. And I can't split myself in 2!

Any advice, does the fact that it will also have a negative affect on his brother have any sway?

Thanks so for reading!

Is there no sibling criteria in the admission policy for your first son's school? Also does it have a criteria for exceptional medical needs and if so did you apply for his needs to be considered?

My experience of appeals panels is that they can go either way so you need a robust case. They won't care about your transport needs so I wouldn't mention that.

If you can pay for psych assessment which will confirm his need to go to the same school as his brother then that will hold a lot more weight than the senco letter.

You have to show why the school you want is the only school that can meet your son's needs and that it would be more detrimental to him not to attend that school than the detriment to other children of having 1 extra in the class. So it's worth finding out what the normal class size is and if they've ever had more children than that and made it work.

Actually the transport thing might be helpful if you can demonstrate that both children need you to take them to school due to their additional needs. Generally secondary school children are expected to get themselves to school alone but I have been on a panel where the parents successfully argued that their secondary school child could not travel alone and therefore they needed a closer school as both parents worked full time.

They are unlikely to take your word for it though so anything you are presenting as evidence needs to be backed up with medical evidence. My school does not accept letters from GPs as medical evidence, it has to be consultant level.

RNBrie so much for your advice. They do have a sibling criteria, but siblings out of catchment come behind siblings out of catchment that attend one of the feeder schools. So although we live 3.5 miles away, some siblings who live 6 miles away got a place because they currently attend one of the feeder schools. And unfortunately no exceptional medical needs criteria.
I know you shouldn't mention transport, but he can't travel alone and neither can his brother, so it's a safety issue rather than just a pain in the bum issue - if that makes sense?
How do I find out class sizes etc? Do I just email the head teacher? I hate being 'that' parent, but I'm going to have to be. I have to do everything I can!

Yes, the key questions here are what oversubscription criterion did you apply under (medical need? sibling?) and which were you considered under. What does the letter/email say about why you didn’t get a place at your preferred school?

The diagnosis letter is of limited usefulness here. To stand a chance of winning your appeal, you will need a letter from your child’s paediatrician (or other health care professional) explaining your child’s needs and confirming that in their professional opinion your child needs a place at this school and will be disadvantaged if they don’t get one.

ASD is not a rare condition and the school/LEA will no doubt argue that all schools are able to support pupils with ASD. It’s also not unusual for siblings not to get into their siblings’ school, if it’s a school which places out of catchment siblings at the bottom of their oversubscription criteria. You therefore need to show why the prejudice (detriment) to your child if they don’t get a place outweighs the prejudice to the school if they have to cater for an extra pupil. Look for other reasons why your child would benefit from this school - subjects offered, extra curricular clubs, pastoral care or whatever.

Apologies - my post crossed with the few before it.

In the circumstances, flag this up as a safeguarding and well-being issue. Make sure your evidence explains why your older child can’t leave the school (so they couldn’t attend another school together) and both children need to be taken to school.

Don't forget you can appeal for more than 1 school, so you can also appeal for your other local schools citing inability to travel independently alongside other good features that your DS would benefit from.

Don't worry at all about being That Parent. The only people who've ever annoyed me are the ones who appeal and then don't take the place if they win! I'm not sure people realise that schools pay for the appeal panel, so it's a huge waste of time and resources if you don't then take the place!

I actually think you have a really good case, you'd be almost certain to win in my experience of panels.

Does your elder son's EHCP have anything in it about transport to school? If not, I'd consider paying for a psychiatrist report for both of them so you can prove they both need transport to school (you might get asked if their other parent can take one of them, so think about how to answer that).

Submit everything you have with the appeal. All the diagnosis info for both boys, EHCP for your elder son, any letters you have, feedback from Senco, explain clearly why your son needs to go to school with his brother, mention the transport as a separate issue from why he needs to be at the same school.

The school will issue their response to your appeal in writing, so at that point you'll know how they're arguing against admitting him. It will almost certainly be related to class size and resources. Then you have a chance to ask questions at the panel.

I am not sure how you find out info about classes being above PAN in the past. If you asked the head at my school she'd do her best not to give you a straight answer! The LA might know. Or you just ask at the panel hearing.

You can't use the fact that he's close to his brother to attend, his brother has a echp which is why it's the best school for him. Can you apply for a echp? Also your older child will be entitled to transport as he has a echp so be careful using that reason. What does the school have/do that the other schools don't that would benefit your youngest. I agree it's unfair but that's not grounds to appeal. My friend has twins both ASC but one also has ADHD, they wouldn't let them go to the same school as their requirments in their echps were different. The boys were lost without each other. Good luck

Thanks all for your advice. My older son gets the school bus, paid for by the council because of his EHCP. We have to drive him to the bus stop which is approximately 2 miles away - he couldn't do that journey on his own.

With regards to psychiatrist reports do I need to secure those before the appeal deadline of March 29th? It seems that every service, including paid for specialists are stretched and appointment wait times are very long in our area.

The centre that diagnosed my youngest son does have an Educational Learning Needs Specialist Practitioner - so I'm going to call them on Monday to see if we can arrange a report from her.

Also, are there appeal specialists I can pay / instruct to help me put this case together? I want to be sure we've not missed anything that might be relevant!

I work in a large secondary school. We had a family go to appeal for very similar reasons - the older child's mental health being a key part of the appeal as that child was so distressed at the thought of their younger sibling not being at the same school. They won the appeal and we were very very pleased.

Put your case as fully as possible, say all you've said here, and do attend the appeal hearing and say it all there too.

I hope you win.

The letter doesn't say why he wasn't offered a place. It lists Criteria 9 - Sibling, not offered by school.

@RoseThornside Thanks so much. We will certainly attend the appeal hearing, although it's all done through teams now, so it will be remote.
My older son also receives DLA, so I guess this all helps?

@Ohdearnotagain76 EHCPs are meant to be issued, if successful, within a 26 week timescale, but many authorities are not meeting these statutory deadlines. An EHCP is unlikely to be agreed before September, especially if a needs assessment has not yet been requested. The request itself takes a lot of time and effort, so I don't think this will help in this case.
From what I've read, the OP's circumstances sound like she has a good case - good luck @Mcsh1977 - I am appealing my son's place too, he also has ASD and I will be using similar arguments, though he doesn't have a sibling at the school. His older sister is at an all girls school and his twin sister has a place there too, so he can't join them! I'm watching your post closely for advice! @RNBrie I am finding your advice helpful too, thank you!

@SuperSue77 good luck to you too!

@Mcsh1977 thank you!

@PanelChair and @RNBrie do you know if I need all the reports before I submit the appeal document? Deadline is March 29th and I'm worried I may not be able to secure appointments with psychologists and get the reports written before then. I can call the appeals team on Monday and ask.

No. Before the deadline, you need to submit your appeal (late appeals will still be considered, but it doesn’t help you if your appeal is being considered after all the others). Give an outline of your arguments, but it’s fine then to say that you will be submitting more evidence from professionals. If you can, send these well before the hearing date, simply because if you produce a heap of documents on the day, the panel may decide to adjourn the hearing to a later date to give themselves time to digest them. That’s potentially unhelpful to you, because (assuming they’re hearing several appeals for your preferred school) they might decide to grant a couple and then, by the time they decide your appeal, the school is under greater pressure of numbers and the balance tips a tiny bit more in their favour.

You asked about paying an appeals advisor. Of course this is up to you but (and please forgive the immodesty) you probably won’t get anything from an appeals advisor that you won’t get free from the combined knowledge and experience of people on MN who’ve spent years on panels or involved in appeals.

The appeals process is designed to be accessible to lay people. You don’t need representation. Panels expect parents to be nervous and will try to put you at your ease.

I would submit the EHCP needs assessment request today. It's possible you may get lucky and have it go through quickly (although unlikely at the moment). Also appeal the place as there's nothing to stop you doing both. It might help to say you are in the EHCP process? But if his needs and anxiety are high enough that he is near school refusal already he probably needs an EHCP anyway and then you choose the school that meets needs. If necessary and he can't attend the current named school in September due to anxiety then that is further evidence of need.

You might get lucky and get someone drop out of his preferred school choice. Keep him on the lists as you never know.
That's mad you have to take older DS 2 miles to a bus stop for them to collect.
I would still start the process of a echp if you think he'd get it. Good luck and try to stay strong

@PanelChair and everyone else thanks so so much for the advice this afternoon, I really appreciate it. I wasn't hoping for more knowledge, just someone who can help me order the arguments and ensure I don't miss anything. But as you've said there is a wealth of knowledge and experience here on MN, so I will crack on setting out my arguments and will ask for guidance here, as and when I need it.