how can i find a solicitor for advice re disability discrimination?

[ThatVikRinA22]

need some legal advice, not sure if im going to needs a specialist or if a bog standard solicitor will do the trick.
need advice re disability discrimination in post 16 provision - ie - college.

had multi team meeting today re son who is failing his A levels -lots of talking. vice principal had no inkling of what disability actually means, lectured my son in front of me and basically told him if he cant "hack it at college" then he "wont be able to go to university", and clearly thought i was a mummy unable to let go to her liddle ickle boy....

SN inclusion co ordinator was more helpful, but they are saying he cannot access a TA for himself as he isnt disabled enough (he has aspergers, dyspraxia and dyslexia and their own educational psychologist agreed and gave the dyslexia dx)
that it seems is the preserve of the severely disabled. ironically - in the one lesson in which he does have access to (someone elses) TA he isnt behind or failing. clearly this is the level of support he needs.Even the inclusion support women said this - they are going to see if they can arrange it so that his lessons fall next year with someone disabled enough to need a TA so he can access support via the back door....this is all bullshit i know and im going to challenge it

there were 6 people at this meeting, the vice principal of the college, me and DH, the special needs inclusion officer, 2 mentors and his senior tutor.

im awaiting the minutes. i need some legal advice - he is 18 and on disability living allowance - does this mean he will get legal aid?

im almost apoplectic with rage. i remember Wetaugust telling me that this type of law is classed as personal injury law - i couldnt find a decent solicitor last time and i did do alot of digging on the net and yellow pages, spent days emailing and phoning...how can i find someone who is actually going to fight our corner on this?
ta.
tia.

I don't know very much about this, but I know that you can have a statement post 16, and that IPSEA do disability discrimination, so puting the two together, IPSEA may be able to help or point you in the right direction.

The NAS have a list on their website of solicitors which have experience of ASD. Your son may be entitled to legal aid, but it might be more difficult trying to find a solicitor who accepts legal aid cases - a lot of them don't any more. I was informed recently that Levenes do take legal aid cases, and they have a good reputation for SEN, but I've no personal experience with them. Also there is something called Children's Legal Centre or similar which offers free legal advice to children, not sure what age limit is. Am sure that IPSEA and NAS can point you in the right direction.

The NAS have a list on their website of solicitors which have experience of ASD. Your son may be entitled to legal aid, but it might be more difficult trying to find a solicitor who accepts legal aid cases - a lot of them don't any more. I was informed recently that Levenes do take legal aid cases, and they have a good reputation for SEN, but I've no personal experience with them. Also there is something called Children's Legal Centre or similar which offers free legal advice to children, not sure what age limit is. Am sure that IPSEA and NAS can point you in the right direction.

Hi Vic

They still don't get it do they?

Educational negligence comes under personal injury. At 16, he is outside statutory education so the College etc has no statutory duty to educate him - however they do have a duty under DDA.

the solictor we used was a specialist in educaton and human rights law.

If you go to www.solicitors.co.uk you can find one by postcode and specialism.

Personally I'd ditch the College - but would also seek a remedy from them for what D has been put through.

At 18 and not in receipt of an income (DLA doesn't count) he should qualify for CLS (community Legal Support which used to be Legal Aid) - you need to ensure that any solicitor you use will do it under CLS.

You can also get advice from the Equality and Human Rights Commission - they have a website and helpline.

The College will be funded by the LA in which it resides. You can be damn sure that the LA will have a policy of expecting the providers (Colleges) from which it commissions services to comply with the relevant statutory legislation - so it would be worth contacting the LA to expose this College.

Apart from finding a good solicitor and an alternative College for him it's going to have to be a scatter gn approach of complaining to everyone and anyone you can. That would include your MP and Local Councillor.

It beggars belief that they are behaving like this.

Del / Star Statements can continue while a child is in Level 3 education but only when educated in a school - not an FE College. In an FE College they are deemed to have left school and the statement ceases.

Thanks WetAugust. I'm learning all the time. Not too hot on this area as ds is only 3, but I understand it is growing in the lawyer world.

cheers mrs....am on phone at min but ill be back...

Pass the sick bucket - I've read read the Colle's Equality Statement - including:

take steps to take account of disabled person's diasabilities even where that involves traeting disabled persons more favourably than other persons.

They claim to have a Disability Support Co-rdinator, an Inclsuive Learning Co-Ordinator and an Equality and Diversity Co-ordinator and a Member of the Govering Body with responbsibility for special needs and learning support.

The Vice Principal owns the Disability Equality Policy!!!
WHERE THE HELL ARE THEY DOING PROHIBITING HIM FROM USING DICTAPHONE ETC

I would throw the fucking book at them - tossers {angry]

People who hide behind pieces of paper that are not worth zilch should be taken out and shot - bastrads!

Del/Star - Yep, you've got all this to look forward to unless supprt services miraculously transform themselves in the next couple of decades. We're pioneeers!

Would n't you prefer this www.hull-college.ac.uk/index.php?page=outstanding-learner-support-2

right now id prefer anywhere....even my placid and unflappable DH got pissed off with her. she was a bit of a bitch to put it mildly.

they take one look at DS and think oh yeah...special needs my arse. i know they do.
the only problem is getting him to hull - but i will phone them and put some feelers out.

i can honestly say the college he is at now is the absolute pits for SEN, DS friend with SENs
has left there with a condition caused my extreme anxiety meaning he cannot pee...he ends up in A&E regularly. its shit.

i went on website too - saw mrs vice principal was in charge of disability equality and nearly choked on my wine...

i took a printout of the DDA in from the website you linked - they then argued with me over what constitutes a "reasonable adjustment". bastards.

Not only that the Minutes of their Dec meeting (also on line) admit they are failing in the results area too - are no longer in the top 25% of colleges.

that could be cos their tutors are a crap. the principal changed aswell. special needs inclusion women is actually ok if not very proactive - but she is leaving this year.

So what are you going to do.

When i was scratching around trying to find A level course for DS I got the prospectus for each of the 9 FE Colleges within about 20 miles of us.

Some I discounted immediately cos they didn't do A levels or the wrong ones

That left 5.

I called each, explained the circs and asked what support they could offer. 3 could offer some Learning Support (but you know my son's circs and it wouldn't have been 1:1 throughout the college day which was what he needed) One College would even let me sit in on the lessons with him at night school free of charge.

He finally ended up (apart from the residential care) getting Learning Support directly from the Fe colege 3 times per week - organistaional skills, exam prep skills and help with subject areas he needed them to go over again - this was 1:1 with his subject tutors).

That's what good learning support is all about - plus being allowed a note-taker in lessons with him (supplied by residential college)

firstly, i need to see what their response is to today and i emailed asking for clarification as to why he could not access the support he needed. i want that in writing. inclusion women was also looking into the other issues - such as getting his PDA back and finding out where they stand on the dictaphone etc. also his senior tutor said if he doesnt make the grade this year he wont be accepted back there anyway.

then i need to sit down with DS. i need to know what he wants, if he is willing to move then i will continue to contact colleges with a view to him continuing physics and maths elsewhere.

i really wish after him having such a nightmare at school i had done more research into colleges. i wont make this mistake with uni plus if i can get him through his A levels he can take time out before uni and go when he is ready.

if he doesnt want to move (change - he wont like that) then i will seek to force their hand in providing appropriate support, this is why we could do with legal advice.

in the meantime i press on with a formal complaint.

i could so do without this bollocks. i feel so sorry for DS.

Vic
get him out of there.

i suspect that will be the answer.

Oh well - Garnacha Rosado 2009 now empty - time for bed said Zebedee!

Here is the link to NAS list of legal help. Some are free advice services and some of the solicitors may be able to offer pro bono work even if they don't do legal aid, so call around as many as you can. Would really recommend a specialist firm rather than random solicitor - I heard recently of highly experienced criminal lawyers using education law firms to deal with SENDIST appeals, it's such a niche area that even other solicitors don't feel comfortable dealing with education law themselves.

thankyou.