tribunal experiences and tips needed please

[billiejeanbob]

The hearing regarding part 2 and 3 of dd's statement is now less than a week away!
Does anyone know what type of questions the judge/ panel are likely to ask me?
We are requesting weekly slt, ot and specialist dyslexia teaching.
Should I take a photo of dd?
Any ideas of what to include within my introduction? should I specify dd's SN during the intro?
Thanks so much for reading.

Are you being represented by anyone?

I took a photo of DS and the Tribunal asked to see it just before the hearing started. The court clerk took it to them.

yes I have a representative from IPSEA attending with me.
I thought that the panel might ask to see a photo of dd, my concern is that her SN are invisible and she looks perfectly NT. (if that makes sense! )

It doesn't matter that her SN are invisible as this is the case for a lot of children. Its more a case of putting a human face to the case so they can see who they are discussing.

I took a photo in a frame and had it in the table. Been to two tribunals now and both panels have asked if we had a photo.

Hard to say what questions as each hearing so different, I found as parents we say very little - lots of questions to the other side so to speak. You may be asked to talk a little at the beginning giving a short background and at the end you have to give a short closing speech. Make sure you bullet point your main points and then check you get those points across. Take snacks/drinks with you as may be not facilities there, wear layers as you will get hot and try not to worry too much - the hearing itself i found to be the easiest part of the process after months of game playing etc and good luck xxxx

thank you everyone
I have recieved confirmation from the LA this morning that we are definitely going to proceed to the hearing as due to my legal teams unreasonable behaviour submitting the evidence and working doc on deadline days the LA dont have enough time to consider my amendedments! This is despite the LA requesting that the hearing be brought forward to this date (next mon) and therefore the deadlines were brought forward!
The LA have known what amendments I wanted from when they first issued the draft in November!

thank you everyone
I have recieved confirmation from the LA this morning that we are definitely going to proceed to the hearing as due to my legal teams unreasonable behaviour submitting the evidence and working doc on deadline days the LA dont have enough time to consider my amendedments! This is despite the LA requesting that the hearing be brought forward to this date (next mon) and therefore the deadlines were brought forward!
The LA have known what amendments I wanted from when they first issued the draft in November!

You'll be surprised at how little is asked of you. It's frustrating because you probably know the case better than anyone in the room, but you are the 'over emotional non-expert' in the room and there almost out of courtesy rather than because you have anything to add outside of responding to the occasional polite inconsequential question.

That was my experience.

However, I had a incompetent judge and an aggressive lay member so I might have just been unlucky.

My DS's needs are invisible. Having a photo always seems to be a hot debate on this forum. Personally I think having a photo focuses the mind of the Judge and panel that this isn't about bits of paper but about a real life living and breathing vulnerable child.

I was represented by a barrister. I gave a lot of evidence - probably about 2 (maybe even 3) hours worth - I spoke more than anyone else. Although I didn't do a "closing" and "opening" speech. My barrister asked me to give specific evidence at key points - each piece of evidence lasting at least 30 minutes with both the judge and the LA's solicitor asking me questions. It was very very draining but at the end of the day, I finally felt that I had been heard.

I was very emotional when I talked about my son's difficulties because I spoke from the heart (the LA's key witness was close to tears several times and was visibly dabbing her eyes!). But I kept all my evidence very tight and very focused.

Take a pack of post-it notes with you - and plenty of pens. Do not interrupt if anyone is talking - the panel won't like it if you do. But use post-it notes to pass messages to your team. At one point, I was passing note after note to my barrister because the LA was infuriating me with their evidence (I was shaking with anger so much that he could barely read my writing)

However, I kept my anger totally away from the school's witnesses. Instead, I was highly complementary about the LA's key witness (head of school's S&L unit) to the judge - the Judge liked that a lot and made a note of it in her Decision.

Ignore all the psychological games your LA are playing. Just stay focused on the needs and provision of YOUR child.

My experience was closer to star's than Towie's - we brought a photo of DS1, but the only action it saw was when one of the panel knocked it off the table with their bundle. I'm pretty sure I could have handed over a picture of Eric Pickles in a mankini without them being any the wiser.

We weren't asked many question by the panel - they directed most of their questions at the LA's witness. 'Questions' is probably stretching it - our panel didn't feel it worthwhile to examine, verify or otherwise substantiate any of the evidence this witness put forward. This isn't a typical panel approach, from what I can gather - most people I know who've been through tribunal have been pretty impressed with the rigour of their questioning.

So because the panel couldn't be arsed to test the evidence, we felt that we had to test it - and this was probably where we came unstuck. We didn't come across as the people who knew our son and his case best, and just wanted an adequate education for him - we came across as entitled, sharp-elbowed, grasping middle class parents who thought they knew better than the "real experts". We lacked humility when we put our questions across, and that was a big mistake - but at that stage, we had nowhere else to go. By mid-afternoon, the LA witness could have offered the panel a range of unique investment opportunities in Nigerian royalty and they'd have taken them.

This is a roundabout way of saying that there aren't any typical tribunal experiences, I think. It's something of a lottery, particularly when it comes to the panel members. I think that we got a hard deal, but at least we didn't get the judge who asked his panel how long the statement lasted before it had to be reviewed again. But most people I know who've gone through it feel that they got to say their piece and that the evidence of the other side had been thoroughly read and tested.

Only one more thing to add - bring your own lunch and loads of water! It saves you having to leave the building (a major ballache if you're in the main centre in London), and saves you having to queue up at the water cooler or local kebab shop with the LA...

best of luck!

I can be rather opinionated (ahem ). Having an advocate is best because then you can be 'just' a parent. Speak only as much as you need to. That is your role on the day unless you are TOWIE

Keep - I only did as the judge and my barrister told me to do. THEY kept me talking!

When I dried up, my barrister urged me to keep on going

I went as a respectful and 'umble mumsy who knows nothing

Thank you for all of the great advice and for sharing experiences.
I am really hoping that we have a good panel and understanding judge.
I will be prepared in terms of water and lunch as ive got a feeling that it will be an all day event - the LA are refusing to budge regarding the working document.
I have printed off dd's photo ready to take with me aswell.
I still havent even recieved the tribunal bundle yet either.

think it shows just how different everyones experiences can be - I have had 2 now in a short space span and both went pretty similar - have to say post it notes were indeed a must! I represented myself both times and didn't have an advocate. I have listened carefully to all the advice given on here and it was invaluable and I went in with the right frame of mind but also agree that as you don't know who your panel is on the day it is a lottery. all you can do is your best. I read an article a few days ago from the head tribunal judge who said that there figures show that 85% of appeals are ruled in the parents favour

TOWIE - that's the advantage of a representative - they can read the panel and t'other side and know what role you should play on the day, when you should speak and when you need to shut up. It is a little harder for us to bracket the emotion. A good rep will let a little emotion into the proceedings but strictly control it.

The judge should identify at the beginning of the hearing what they think the issues are, which will basically be those bits of the working document that aren't agreed, and will way how they propose to deal with those - probably working through them one by one. So when you prepare your bullet points, concentrate on the bits that aren't agreed and include facts that illustrate why you think it's an issue - e.g. if it's sensory issues, you might refer to the fact that your dc doesn't like hair brushing and teeth cleaning, can't cope with noise/bright lights/crowded places, is easily distracted etc etc.

thanks icimoi. its going to be a difficult few hours then - the LA are refusing to agree to any of our amendments at all. Even though each and every amendment is taken from an indie report.

Shuddering at Eric Pickles in a mankini

Hope it goes well for you. I have been to a tribunal (discrimination) and did take along a picture of ds. The school staff pointedly made a remark that the picture was a few months out of date and my ds was bigger than that now but the judge pointed out to them that he was still only a child. I did think it was worthwhile taking a photo just so the panel can picture the child in the middle of it all.

Does your LA have a firm of outside lawyers? It sounds a bit like the tactics used every sodding time by a firm regularly instructed by some LAs. Also by one or two of their former employees now working for LAs.