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The LEA decided to name a large mainstream secondary school with an ASC.  On visiting this school the parent found that it was not actually an ASC, but several classrooms scattered throughout a large school with over 1000 pupils.  Knowing the effect this would have on her child, who was unable to handle such an environment, the parent once again requested a specialist residential placement which she had been to visit and who had made an offer of a place.

Once again the powers that be refused that request stating that the mainstream school could meet the childs needs, with full time one to one support.

The bullies who had had such a profound affect on this child's well being in the first primary school were also to be in the same year group. So here we have a child who has a very fragile self esteem anyway and feels so different from their peers, being placed in an environment which they are terrified of, with another group of children they are terrified of when every single person who had assessed them, including the LEAs own Educational Psychologist, has stated that they could not cope with this environment and needed specialist residential schooling.

One has to wonder why LEAs commission such expensive reports and then choose to totally ignore the advice within them, but that is exactly what they did.

The parent then took legal advice, she was legally aided so this was at the cost of the tax payer and began a lengthy legal battle which is still ongoing today.

The case was so unreasonable, with no evidence to support what the LEA were proposing and mountains of evidence to support the parents views that the solicitor took the case to the high court to request a judicial review due to unreasonable suggestions being made by the LEA. Again this was at the cost of you the tax payer.

Though the judge at the high court was sympathetic to the case, sadly cannot report any more here of what was said in the court, he said we still must go to the tribunal before proceeding to judicial review.

Some two months later a tribunal took place.  Parents are not entitled to legal representation at educational tribunals so the solicitor acted for free.

Again we cannot report here what was said inside the tribunal, but can state that the educational psychologist from the LEA who assessed this child and recommended residential school was not requested to attend by the LEA!  Instead they bought an ed psych who last met this child 7 years previously and has had no further contact or involvement with the case!

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