SEN, Separation & crossing local authority borders

[NinkasiNinjaPaws]

I'd really appreciate some thoughts on this...
Dh and I have agreed to separate, it's a long time coming and for various reasons I'm the one leaving the marital home.
Ds1 (11) attends a specialist independent school for ASD, he's happy and we're happy he goes there as it will see him through to 19; we had to go tribunal to get him there. LA additionally pay for a taxi to get him there and back.
As I was viewing a property today I realised that I was crossing the LA border by a few miles. The house is perfect and significantly cheaper than properties in the city centre.
Dh and I are aiming to do 50/50 custody with the two boys spending 4 nights with me and three with him.
How much of a potential issue is this going to be with funding? Is it just going to be an admin thing on EHCP's or could this seriously screw over his provision? His school is actually in the same LA as potential new house. Technically DS1 will be spending 50% of his time at the old house anyway but lm nervous that moving just a few miles over the border might be far more trouble than it's worth.

Could DS be "resident" with his father to avoid this? Or would that screw you over for benefits etc.

I don't actually know the answer but I'd do almost anything to avoid moving area myself (I have a child with a place at a £££ out of county placement funded by an EHCP!)

Yes, having Ds resident with soon to be ex would be problematic for benefits and frankly the ex has never been brilliant at the day to day parent stuff. It's sounds like Ds1 is at a similar school to your child, independent/ out of LA area/£££/EHCP funded. I'm loathed to do anything to jeopardise it, until I saw the county sign it didn't occur that 2-3 miles away from the marital home would put me over the border.

@NinkasiNinjaPaws

It's not clear from your post but is the new house in a different LA from the one you are currently in?

Yes, it's in the neighbouring LA.

@NinkasiNinjaPaws

In that case the EHCP will move to the control of the neighbouring authority.

www.ipsea.org.uk/moving-to-a-new-local-authority

What you need to be aware of is the new LA has the right to reassess your child which you might not want them to do if everything is hunky dory at the moment, and especially if the school he is at is a wholly independent school, as obviously the costs of it will transfer to the new LA.

The obvious solution here is for DH to move out and you stay put.

Yeah, the problem is DH isn't likely to do that. It's strictly "his" house as he bought it with inheritance money and we've verbally agreed to split it 40-60 in his favour when divorce proceedings start as I have savings from an inheritance. He's also struggling with the concept of the split, if I told him to leave I'd be nervous he'd jack in his job of 10 years. On a purely selfish note I sort of need the maintenance as I left my professional career when ds2 was born and it was clear ds1 wasn't coping in a regular nursery environment and DH was cut out for sah parent role. It'll be a calmer process if I'm the one going.

That's a shame.

If it was me I'd stay in the same LA. Better the devil you know and all that as from what I've heard and read, LAs are all shit, but some are more shit than others.

Is the school wholly independent or a section 41 school?

You won’t be entitled to get maintenance if it’s 50/50 care.

On another matter entirely, I hope you've had good legal advice about what you're entitled to in any divorce settlement, especially as you gave up a professional career.

If you post on the Relationship boards you'll get good advice on there too.

I'm not entirely sure, it's part of the SENAD group. Not done legal advice yet, it's on the to do list, I was waiting to get the housing sorted before that. I think I'm resigned to the fact I'll have to keep within the LA, I have the added complication that I'm taking a cat with me. We've got three and frankly I think it would be too much of a change for DS1 to go from three to none in a home environment. Its 50/50 in as much as the kids spending four/five nights with me and two/ three with him. The child maintenance calculators are accepting that and anyhow we've agreed a figure verbally. We're both agreed that it's not going to do the kids any favours to be tearing chunks of each other, yes I could stamp my foot over certain things but it's going to be a difficult enough situation as it is.