Waltham Forest families say there are not enough school placements, which has led to their children being home-schooled or out of education, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter
Parents of children with special education needs (SEND) say they are being failed by Waltham Forest Council.
Local families say there are not enough school placements within the borough, which has led to their children being home-schooled or out of education for months and even years.
Councils across the UK are required by law to maintain a “clear and accessible” offer of local services and make sure it meets the needs of local families.
However, parents say the scarcity of commissioned places in schools has meant their children – who “simply deserve an education” – have “slipped through the cracks” for years.
Speaking at a public demonstration last night (10th February), campaigner and parent Claire Bithell said families had suffered as a result of the under-commissioning, the long waits for occupational therapy, high staff turnovers, and “awful” transport provision.
She said: “There’s no help when you first get a diagnosis. You think if you wait for years and years and finally get diagnosed, there’d be any support – but it’s not there waiting.”
She added: “They talk the talk about their amazing strategies and how they’ve improved, but this campaign has been going since 2019.
“They take our time, tie us in knots with bureaucracy, and we see no meaningful support for our children.”
She also attacked the “diabolical” way education, health and care plans (EHCP) – which outline the support a child needs in the classroom – were not apparently being considered.
Keeping children who’d rather go to school at home leads to “everyone’s mental health fraying really quickly,” she added.
Kizzy Gardiner, Waltham Forest Council’s cabinet member for young people, said she took people’s concerns “very seriously,” but the town hall faced “severe financial pressures” due to rising costs and “particularly sharp increases in demand in both adult social care and support for children with SEND”.
The protest was held outside the town hall last night, at the start of the latest Ofsted inspection of the council’s care services.
Around 30 members of the public attended, including young children who are currently out of school, as well as representatives from the local branches of the Socialist Workers Party and the Liberal Democrats.
Many children carried cardboard placards, containing messages such as, “Why must we fight for our basic rights?” and “All children matter”.
Sheema Luca, whose 13-year-old son has ADHD, managed to find a place for her son in a fee-paying school, but only after what she called a “stressful battle” that involved lawyers.
The mother-of-two told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “Other people might not have the time, the energy, the inclination or the know-how to do that. To get a lawyer is quite stressful and it’s just exhausting.
“We’re the only ones who help each other.”
Another parent said her child, who is autistic, was attending a school for the visually impaired due to the shortage of places for disabled but academically capable pupils.
She said she had dealt with four case officers in the past eight months, which left her feeling neglected, adding: “Where are the aspirations for our children?”
Cllr Gardiner said the council had recently invested more than £800,000 to “bolster our SEND workforce and ensure the service remains resilient and effective”.
She said in a statement: “We continue to engage with the established and dedicated SEND parent carer forum, who are represented on our SEND strategic board.
“Through this parents, carers and children have a voice and we encourage open and continuous dialogue between service users and the council.
“While we recognise the challenges we face and the work we have to do, Waltham Forest Council remains committed to providing the best possible services for children and young people with SEND.”
Social care is the biggest burden on the Labour-run council, next to housing.
The council previously said it is “not immune” from the nation-wide financial crisis, when challenged on its decision to close the Markhouse day centre for disabled adults.
Arran Angus, the campaign chair for the Waltham Forest Liberal Democrats, said following last night’s meeting: “Our Labour-run council used to get away with blaming ‘Tory cuts’ for a lack of resources, but that excuse no longer washes.”
He said that “far too many families” had to resort to legal action for the council to “fulfil its duty to them,” during which time children had been “deprived of vital educational support”.
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