Category: special educational needs

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

Posted December 19th, 2012 in consultations, education, learning difficulties, local government, news, school admissions, special educational needs by sally

“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 tracey

“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 tracey

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

Down’s Syndrome daughter ‘should stay in school until she’s 25’ – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 25th, 2011 in appeals, education, learning difficulties, news, special educational needs by sally

“The father of a Down’s Syndrome woman is attempting to force a council to let her stay in school until 25, in a case which could see thousands of special needs adults taught alongside children.”

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 24th October 2011

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Leeds City Council failed children with special needs – BBC News

Posted July 12th, 2011 in children, local government, news, ombudsmen, reports, special educational needs by tracey

“There were ‘serious and extensive failures’ in the way Leeds City Council treated three children with special educational needs, a report has found.”

Full story

BBC News, 11th July 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Regina (RO) v East Riding of Yorkshire Council (Secretary of State for Education intervening) – WLR Daily

Posted March 3rd, 2011 in appeals, education, law reports, local government, special educational needs by sally

Regina (RO) v East Riding of Yorkshire Council (Secretary of State for Education intervening) [2011] EWCA Civ 196; [2011] WLR (D) 69

“A child’s status as a ‘looked after child’ for the purposes of the Children Act 1989 did not come to an end when the local authority, by virtue of a statement of special educational needs under the Education Act 1996, arranged for him to be accommodated at a residential school.”

WLR Daily, 2nd March 2011

Source: www.lawreports.co.uk

Please note that once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is remoced.

Regina (B) v Islington London Borough Council – WLR Daily

Posted August 25th, 2010 in education, law reports, local government, special educational needs by sally

Regina (B) v Islington London Borough Council [2010] WLR (D) 236

“The Education Act 1996 placed no obligation on a local authority to maintain a statement of special educational needs for a young person over the age of 19 or to fund him or her to continue in secondary education.”

WLR Daily, 24th August 2010

Source: www.lawreports.co.uk

Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.

A v Essex County Council – WLR Daily

Posted July 16th, 2010 in disabled persons, human rights, law reports, school admissions, special educational needs by sally

A v Essex County Council; [2010] UKSC 33; [2010] WLR (D) 184

“A local education authority which took 18 months to secure a place at one of the few specialist schools which was equipped to cope with a severely disabled child with special education needs, during which time he was unable to attend school at all, had not, by taking so much time, denied the child’s right to education contrary to art 2 of the First Protocol to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.”

WLR Daily, 15th July 2010

Source: www.lawreports.co.uk

Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.

Regina (M) v East Sussex County Council – Times Law Reports

Posted May 12th, 2009 in law reports, special educational needs by sally

Regina (M) v East Sussex County Council

Queen’s Bench Division

“The failure by a local authority to amend a child’s statement of special educational needs during the year of his transfer between phases of schooling, and to name and specify the type of school was a breach of its statutory obligation.”

The Times, 12th May 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

R (M) v East Sussex County Council – WLR Daily

Posted May 1st, 2009 in law reports, special educational needs by sally

R (M) v East Sussex County Council; [2009] WLR(D) 141

“The failure by a local education authority to amend a child’s statement of special educational needs during the year of the child’s transfer between phases of schooling, and to name and specify the type of school, was a breach of its obligations under s 324 of the 1996 Act and reg 19 of the 2001 Regulations.”

WLR Daily, 30th April 2009

Source: www.lawreports.co.uk

Please note once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.

H (a Child) v East Sussex County Council – Times Law Reports

Posted April 22nd, 2009 in law reports, reasons, special educational needs, tribunals by sally

H (a Child) v East Sussex County Council

Court of Appeal

“Special educational needs tribunals were required to give only summary reasons for their decisions.”

The Times, 22nd April 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Dyslexic pupil wins £25,000 compensation – The Guardian

Posted October 7th, 2008 in compensation, dyslexia, news, special educational needs by sally

“A pupil with dyslexia has received almost £25,000 in compensation from the local council after teachers failed to diagnose his condition, it has emerged.”

Full story

The Guardian, 7th October 2008

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Special Educational Needs (Information) Act 2008

Posted July 22nd, 2008 in legislation, special educational needs by sally

Special Educational Needs (Information) Act 2008 published

Full text of Act (PDF)

Source: www.opsi.gov.uk

Regina (M) v Sutton London Borough Council – Times Law Reports

Posted January 3rd, 2008 in law reports, special educational needs by sally

Regina (M) v Sutton London Borough Council

Court of Appeal

“Where a local authority specified the parents’ choice of school in a special educational needs statement on condition that the parents paid for transport as there were other nearer suitable mainstream schools, the authority was not obliged to provide free transport to that school.”

The Times, 3rd January 2008

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

Please note the Times Law Reports are only available free on Times Online for 21 days from the date of publication.