Parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) believe that Staffordshire County Council is using “delaying tactics” that slow the provision of support for their children, Dave Robertson has warned.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Robertson – the MP for Lichfield, Burntwood and the surrounding villages – highlighted the case of Hugo.
Hugo is deafblind – but it took two years for Staffordshire County Council to grant him an Education, Health and Care Plan, the first step towards tailored support.
Hugo’s parents had to use their personal savings to challenge the council’s decision at a SEND tribunal – where they won their case.
Hugo’s plan said that the best school for him would be the Royal School for the
Deaf in Derby. Yet again, Staffordshire County Council tried to block him from attending.
After four months of anxiety and delay, this week the council finally relented.
“I received one of the best emails that I have received since becoming a Member of Parliament,” Mr Robertson said.
But Hugo’s was not an isolated case. “Too many parents face the same challenges,” Mr Robertson warned.
“Parents so often use the phrase ‘delaying tactics’ to me around the need to go to tribunals and the consistent arguments that they have to have at every single step of this process,” he added.
Mr Robertson highlighted the “shocking number of wrongful council decisions on SEND support”.
Staffordshire County Council rejects 44% of requests for Education, Health and Care Plans – a higher share than all but three other councils.
But nationally, almost 98% of parents who challenge their council’s decision at a SEND tribunal win their case.
Mr Robertson urged the government to build on the £1 billion of funding it has earmarked to boost SEND provision by passing a law to fix the “broken system”.
He is also setting up a community network for parents of children with SEND, teachers and governors. Constituents can join by emailing dave.robertson.mp@parliament.uk