Family Friendly

We approach families who have been let down, treated wrongly or unfairly on the basis of a sympathetic understanding, that by the time parents reach us, they are at the end of their tether and despairing about persuading their LEA to make appropriate provision for their child’s Special Educational Needs.

We also understand that the Special Educational Needs of children can put an enormous strain on families. This is not unusual. Not only is meeting a child’s needs a demanding and exhausting task within the family, they find fighting the education system and sometimes Social Services as well is an up hill and soul destroying task. Many parents report that if dealing with their child’s Special Educational Needs were not an already sufficiently challenging task, dealing with LEA’s and Social Services Departments, often feels like taking on an additional part time job.

Many parents knowing what is provided now, can affect their child for the rest of their lives become increasingly concerned as time drips by. We take the view that provision delayed is provision denied.

It can be an enormous relief to parents worn down by the system, to stop and hand their cases over to someone else to sort out, and not have further direct dealing with their Local Education Authorities offices.

This is a specialist area of law requiring knowledge and expertise of specialist legal advisors. We are often able to resolve things reasonably quickly, in comparison with the time that parents have already spent being churned around in the system.

Many of our clients come back to us at crucial phase transitions in their child’s education such as primary to secondary school transition, post 16 provisions and transition for young adults with learning disabilities. Life long conditions require continuing services from the Local Education Authorities/LEA’s, Social Services Department, and the Local NHS Trust.

Whilst we have a reputation for robust representation for our clients the practice values are based on every child’s right to an education and the provision of social services irrespective of means. There is nothing in the legislation or the Code of Practice which contains an ”if we can afford it” proviso.