Hampshire County Council - what's going on or is this typical?

[LouLuBelles]

We have recently moved back to Hampshire with our DS who has an EHCP. Over the past few months we have been trying to get some progress from the SEN team to get his EHCP updated and to organise a suitable educational provision. Over this time we've had long periods of silence without any communication from Hampshire CC - and both times its turned out his case workers have simply left the Council without telling us. So we've been waiting, wondering and emailing and calling into the ether... meanwhile our DS is at home floundering, bored and not able to attend college or undertake any learning. It's quite heartbreaking to see. Is all this churn in the workforce of the SEN team normal? Has anyone else experienced case workers leaving and not telling them? It is so frustrating. And the pace of progress seems glacial. But is it normal?
We're about to make a complaint and contact the ombudsman so would love to hear others' experiences with HCC SEN team recently.

That is normal, I’m afraid.

Complaining then going to the LGO is far too long a process to be a realistic remedy.

You need to email the Director of Children’s Services reminding them under regulation 15 of The Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 they are now responsible for the EHCP. That includes delivering the provision in F and if they fail to provide the provision ASAP you will be forced to pursue judicial review proceedings. If that doesn’t work, you need a pre-action letter.

Did you move a short distance or long? In your email you should also remind them they must also fund the placement in I. If it isn’t practicable for DS to attend the previous placement, the LA must arrange alternative provision until the EHCP is amended.

Also, in your email, remind the LA they must inform you within 6 weeks of the transfer whether they are going to reassess and when they proposed to review. They must review the EHCP within 12 months of the previous review or 3 months from the date of transfer, whichever is later.

Thanks so much for your advice. That is information I hadn't seen and didn't know about so I think will really help us direct our complaints and efforts most effectively. We moved from overseas back to the UK - hence our EHCP is well overdue an update as it last reviewed in 2019.
When we moved back into the area, they agreed the EHCP would be reviewed but they didn't give us a timeframe. It's been 7 weeks since our transfer date but within that time, both case officers have left (without telling us). It feels shambolic and would be laughable if I didn't have teenage DS at home, directionless, bored and unable to start college!

Unfortunately, DC whose parents know the system and will enforce their DC’s rights get better support. It shouldn’t be that, but don’t expect it to change in the foreseeable future.

In a way, the chaotic state of the LA has worked to your advantage. Many find LAs propose to cease to maintain if they move abroad. Although being ‘lucky’ in this way doesn’t mean the LA can now act as they wish. They must still follow the law. Definitely follow the steps in my pp.

It is worth reading IPSEA and SOSSEN’s websites to better understand EHCPs.

How old is DS? If he is still compulsory school age, as well as my previous post, the LA has a duty to ensure he still receives a suitable full-time education under section 19 of the Education Act 1996. This is separate to the LA’s duty relating to the EHCP.

DS is16 currently which is still compulsory school age? So they would be failing under section 19 of the Education Act too? He struggles with many aspects of academic work but loves school and meeting people so being at home everyday while trying to settle into a new life back in the UK is tough on him.
I have just been on the websites you mentioned - it is dispiriting seeing how common these problems are.
I think we have a very strong case against the LA. Have you experience writing a PAP letter, either by yourself or a lawyer? I would be keen to write one myself (feeling fired up right now!) But from what I'm reading, we'd give ourselves the best chance of action to get such a letter written by legal professionals.
I also just saw a Judicial Review from August 2024 in which the High Court upheld the case against Hampshire CC for lack of SEP! Quite similar complaints to ours. I'm thinking the lawyers in that case could be a place to start.
You're so right that justice for our SEN DC seems to rely on parental knowledge and access to resources.

If DS was 16 on or after 1st September, he is still compulsory school age. If he was 16 on the 31st August or before, he isn’t. If DS is not compulsory school age the LA doesn’t have a duty under section 19 so while they have the power to make provision they don’t have to. Although the law surrounding the EHCP doesn’t change.

I do have lots of experience of PAP letters. Unless you have experience of writing them, you really need a solicitor to do one for you. You don’t want to get it wrong or miss something. However, your starting point is email the Director of Children’s Services and threatening judicial review like I said in my first post. Some find the threat works.

Excellent advice. TYSM! We'll start with that letter and see how we get on.

It's also useful for us to change our mindset from friendly parents trusting everything the LA tells us, to potential complainants, keeping track of all our numerous calls and emails, and all their empty promises. Up until now we've been giving them the benefit of the doubt repeatedly but this has clearly got us nowhere.

We’re in Hampshire (moved recently from Herts) and and they are appalling. I thought Hertfordshire was bad but the lengths I have to go to to get ANYONE to speak to us in Hampshire is insane. Our daughter is allegedly a priority as she has no school provision since our move, and yet it’s a constant, constant battle to get anywhere with them.

I agree with the PAP letter. Even just threatening judicial review meant someone actually called us. SOS SEN can help with writing the letter

SOSSEN can help with pre-action letters. However, there is a wait (a sign of the demand) so OP may want to look elsewhere for a quicker resolution.

The wait isn’t too bad - although possibly done on a case by case basis. I contacted them at the end of June and they got back to me offering to go ahead mid-August.

June is very different to September in terms of SOSSEN’s normal waiting lists. The waits almost always build over the summer. And some firms could take you on quicker than a 6 week wait.

Absolutely.
Just for OP’s awareness, the three firms I spoke to quoted between £400-600 an hour and said it would take 3-4 hours to prepare and write the letter.

Interesting info - especially as the one firm I contacted quoted between £1,500 and £3,000 for the letter. I thought this was very expensive (even for legal work!). Did you send PAP letter in the end? And has any progress been made for your daughter?
Yesterday, we sent an email as per the advice from pp as well as a hard copy letter. Here's hoping we get some traction.

This is the case I Special Needs Jungle Hampshire CC Judicial Review from August 2024 in which HCC was found to have failed in its duties to provide SEP for a child. The judge effectively took them to task for their lack of speed and responsibility, and for allowing a child to be without education and therefore critically impacting their wellbeing and future.

The threat of the PAP letter made them start consulting appropriate schools, so we didn’t have to go through with it . They did just enough that I couldn’t then start JR proceedings so we still have a bit of a slog ahead of us. But SOSSEN have still given us some solid advice and say they are there for us if we need them.
good luck with it!

That’s within the normal range, sadly. Coram and Birkett Long are usually at the cheaper end compared to some. Unless you are eligible for legal aid?