Q:
Since appealing section I and receiving a tribunal date, we have just received an email from our local authority Tribunal Officer, asking what our child's views are on which school she wants to attend and if we wnat to discuss their decision in more detail to get in touch, they want to come to a resolution. Should we engage?
We applied for a specialist school for transition of our daughter to secondary school in September. She has an EHCP with 1:1 in mainstream primary school, but the local secondary school has said they cannot support her needs; we also feel that she would not cope in the large scale setting etc etc. The specialist provision has offered her a place but the local authority has named the mainstream secondary school in the EHCP, hence our appeal. We have requested information, reasons for the decision etc prior to appeal but they would not engage. Now that we are heading towards tribunal they have sent an email asking us for our child's view and if we want to discuss further to come to a resolution. NB. they have only 2 weeks left to submit their evidence pack. This all feels suspicious as we had those discussions in the phase transition meeting with school and the LA, plus all the specialist reports state that our daughter needs to attend a small specialist setting. Not sure to what extent we should reply to this email and engage with the LA now at this stage.
A: SenseCheck
- 0 Yes
- 0 No
- 1 Other
- 20 Mar 2025
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Other
Other
Can't answer yes or no.:
Rule 21(2)(e) the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Health, Education and Social Care Chamber) Rules 2008 requires that a local authority’s response to an appeal must include, among other things, “the views of the child about the issues raised by the proceedings.” Accordingly, there is nothing improper about the local authority seeking these views. The weight given to them will depend on the child’s age and the nature of any impairments. The child’s views may, for instance, be obtained through an assessment by a relevant expert, or an older child may provide them directly. Perhaps this latter approach would be applicable in your daughter's case, with some assistance from yourself. However, it is essential that anyone using the approach would have to ensure that the content of what the child writes is entirely their opinion of the child and they have not been influenced.
That said, it appears that the local authority would have already submitted its response in your appeal. If so, this consideration seems somewhat late in the day.
It is unclear what you mean by a “specialist” school, as schools fall into two categories: mainstream schools and special schools. It is also unclear whether you have appealed Sections B (special educational needs) and F (special educational provision) of the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). Both sections are highly significant, regardless of the type of school, though they can be considered slightly differently depending on the school’s designation.
The decision on whether to attend a meeting with the local authority is ultimately yours. However, such meetings can often be beneficial in working towards a resolution. Before committing to one, you may wish to request a proposed agenda from the local authority to review and agree upon before any meeting takes place - presumably after the evidence deadline.
Sean Kennedy
Sean Kennedy
Talem Law
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