The Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman, this week published a complaint made against Sheffield Council for their failing to provide a suitable alternative education for a boy with special educational needs. The Ombudsman found an alarming 12 examples of failings by the council and recommended they pay the family £20,000 in recognition of the dreadful way that matters had been dealt with. We continue to be a big fan of the Local Government Ombudsman who frequently uphold complaints and appear quick to hold councils to account when there is evidence of fault and wrong-doing. If you have concerns about your child’s education or need advice on taking a complaint to the Ombudsman, our specialist education law team can help. FULL ARTICLE
Tes published an interesting article looking at the financial future of the SEND system. The Department for Education annual report highlights that the financial future of SEND system is fragile as it ‘costs more than funding available’ as the number of SEND pupils rise by 200,000 in a year. A frightening statistic in an already ‘fragile’ system and the ongoing Covid pandemic will no doubt add fuel to the fire. CLICK HERE
It was announced yesterday (Sunday 8th November) that following on from the campaign launched by footballer Marcus Rashford, the Government is to spend more than £400 million to support poor children and their families. This will be welcome news for the many families who are entitled to the support and it is estimated that almost 1.7 million children are now set to have their lives improved. FULL ARTICLE
