LGO censures council over bid to force vulnerable girl to move schools – Local Government Lawyer

Posted October 2nd, 2013 in children, news, ombudsmen, social services, special educational needs by sally

“The Local Government Ombudsman has sharply criticised a council that tried to force a vulnerable 13-year-old girl to move from the residential school she attended.”

Full story

Local Government Lawyer, 1st October 2013

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

New term, new approach to social care costs in SEN appeals – Education Law Blog

Posted September 2nd, 2013 in budgets, education, local government, news, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

“We’re back to school with a bang with the decision of the Upper Tribunal in WH v Warrington BC [2013] UKUT 0391 (AAC) where Judge Williams declined to follow O v Lewisham [2007] EWHC 2130 (Admin) and instead held that the only relevant “public expenditure” for the purposes of section 9 of the Education Act 1996 is that which comes out of the local authority’s education budget.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 1st September 2013

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Judicial review of FTT in UT: what costs rule applies? – Education Law Blog

“In R (LR) v FTT [2013] UKUT 0294 (AAC) the parents and local authority had settled an appeal against a statement of special educational needs and entered into a consent order. The local authority subsequently sought to re-open the tribunal’s approval of that order and, following a review, the FTT set it aside.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 9th July 2013

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Parental choice of mainstream education – Education Law Blog

“In Harrow Council v AM [2013] UKUT 0157 (AAC), the Upper Tribunal considered a local authority’s obligations where a parent chose mainstream education for a child with complex special educational needs. The decision also discusses two important procedural issues, namely when a First-tier Tribunal can rely on its own knowledge without seeking views from the parties and its powers on review.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 6th May 2013

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Teacher Amanda Whitfield who force-fed custard is banned – BBC News

Posted April 12th, 2013 in disciplinary procedures, news, special educational needs, teachers by sally

“A teacher who force-fed custard to a special needs child has been banned following a disciplinary hearing.”

Full story

BBC News, 11th April 2013

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Special Educational Needs and School Transport – 11 KBW

Posted April 8th, 2013 in news, special educational needs, transport, Wales by sally

“In this paper, I intend to cover the following areas:-
(1) An update on reform to the special educational needs regime
(2) Case law update on recent special educational needs cases
(3) School transport.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, 3rd April 2013

Source: www.11kbw.co.uk

Inter-authority recoupment – Education Law Blog

“The Inter-authority Recoupment (England) Regulations 2013 have now been made and will come into force on 1 April 2013.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 13th March 2013

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Children and Families Bill 2013 – 11 KBW

Posted March 6th, 2013 in bills, children, local government, news, special educational needs by sally

“Part 3 of the Children and Families Bill 2013 (‘the Bill’) was intended to deliver ‘the biggest
reforms for 30 years’ for children and young people with SEN.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, 5th March 2013

Source: www.11kbw.com

The Children and Families Bill – the new SEN provisions – 11 KBW

Posted March 6th, 2013 in bills, children, local government, news, special educational needs by sally

“The legislative framework governing the approach to children with special educational needs (‘SEN’) in England has remained broadly the same since the coming into force of Part 4 of the Education Act 1996 on 1st November 1996. However, on 18 March 2012, the Department for Education published a Green Paper, Support and Aspiration: A New Approach to Special Educational Needs and Disability, signalling an intention to review that framework. The intention to legislate in this field was reiterated in the Queen’s Speech on 9th May 2012, which was swiftly followed by the follow-up to the Green Paper, Progress and Next Steps, on 15 May 2012.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, 5th March 2013

Source: www.11kbw.com

Refusal to make a statement: remember the context – Education Law Blog

Posted February 5th, 2013 in appeals, education, local government, news, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

“A short recent decision of the Upper Tribunal (JS v Worcestershire County Council [2012] UKUT 451 (AAC)) has emphasised the importance, when assessing a child’s special educational needs (‘SENs’), of considering the context in which he or she is performing.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 4th february 2013

Source: www.education11kbw.com

SEN Update – 11 KBW

“This paper considers developments in relation to the law on Special Educational Needs over the last year. It will address three main areas:
(1) recent SEN cases;
(2) practice and procedure issues;
(3) the Children and Families Bill.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, November 2012

Source: www.11kbw.com

Education and Human Rights – 11 KBW

Posted December 19th, 2012 in education, human rights, news, parental rights, special educational needs by sally

“Education lawyers cannot ignore the European Convention of Human Rights. The ‘right to education’ is enshrined in Article 2 of the First Protocol to the Convention, and other Convention rights are often in play when education decisions need to be made. In this paper, we examine in detail the content of Article 2 of the First Protocol, and highlight the other Convention rights that frequently feature in education cases.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, November 2012

Source: www.11kbw.com

Academies in court: recent case law – 11 KBW

“This paper concentrates on three recent cases concerning different aspects of the emerging law on Academies:
(1) Consultation on Academy conversions under s.5 Academies Act 2010 (‘the 2010
Act’);
(2) The extent of the obligation on Academies (both pre and post 2010 Act) to admit
children with a statement of Special Educational Needs (‘SSEN’); and
(3) The new Academy ‘presumption’ in s.6A of the Education and Inspections Act 2006.”

Full story (PDF)

11 KBW, 4th December 2012

Source: www.11kbw.com

Residential Placement: The Upper Tribunal strikes again – Education Law Blog

Posted November 12th, 2012 in local government, news, residential care, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

“Special educational needs (“SEN”) cases involving residential placements are often particularly contentious: the pupil will often have (or be alleged to have) particularly significant SENs, but the local authority will be potentially facing a very large bill for such a placement. The issue has again been considered by the Upper Tribunal in London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham v JH [2012] UKUT 328 (AAC).”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 12th November 2012

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Academies should be subject to the law on pupils with special needs – The Guardian

Posted August 23rd, 2012 in education, news, special educational needs by sally

“Tribunal rulings against academies excluding special educational needs pupils must be backed up by changes to the law.”

Full story

The Guardian, 22nd August 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Academy loses legal challenge over special needs pupils – The Guardian

Posted August 21st, 2012 in education, news, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

“One of the government’s flagship academy schools has lost a legal challenge over its refusal to admit a number of children with special educational needs.”

Full story

The Guardian, 20th August 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

SEN and Academies: The Upper Tribunal has its say – Education Law Blog

Posted July 17th, 2012 in education, news, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

“Academies are independent, non-fee-paying schools funded by the Secretary of State. For special educational needs (SEN) purposes, although Academies are deemed to be mainstream schools (see the Education Act 1996, s.316(4)(b)(iii)), they are not subject to the duties in relation to SEN that maintained schools (as defined in s.312(5)) are. That gap is, however, (at least partially) plugged by the terms of the Funding Agreement between the Secretary of State and the Academy Trust. Indeed, in relation to Academies created since the Academies Act 2010, s.1(7) of the 2010 Act requires the Funding Agreement to impose ‘SEN obligations’ (i.e. the obligations under Chapter 1 of Part IV of the 1996 Act) on the Academy.”

Full story

Education Law Blog, 11th July 2012

Source: www.education11kbw.com

Academies’ refusal to admit pupils with special needs prompts legal battles – The Guardian

Posted May 25th, 2012 in news, school admissions, special educational needs by sally

“Two of the government’s flagship academy schools are facing legal challenges for refusing to admit children with statements of special needs.”

Full story

The Guardian, 24th May 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

DfE sets out key features of Children and Families Bill – Family Law Week

Posted May 10th, 2012 in adoption, bills, care orders, children, families, news, special educational needs by sally

“The Department for Education has set out the key features of the Children and Families Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech. The Bill is expected to be introduced early in 2013.”

Full story

Family Law Week, 9th May 2012

Source: www.familylawweek.com

Williams v Essex County Council – WLR Daily

Posted November 17th, 2011 in appeals, law reports, local government, special educational needs by sally

Williams v Essex County Council: [2011] EWCA Civ 1315;  [2011] WLR (D)  329

“A statement of special educational needs automatically lapsed when a person ceased to be a child, which was at 19 years. The Court of Appeal so stated when allowing the appeal of Essex County Council against a decision of Judge Jacobs in the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) on 8 March 2010 setting aside a decision of the First-tier Tribunal (Health, Education and Social Care Chamber) of 8 September 2009 that it was no longer necessary to maintain the statement of special educational needs of MW (now aged 22 years), the daughter of the claimant, Antony John Williams.”

WLR Daily, 15th November 2011

Source: www.iclr.co.uk