Memorandum submitted by Contact a Family
Contact a Family provides support, advice and
information to families with disabled children across the UK.
Each year, our helpline and information services assist over 18,000
parents.
Of our enquiries around 1,500 each year concern
Special Educational Needs. Contact a Family does not take a particular
stance on the mainstream vs. special school debate, but seeks
to advise and assist parents in an impartial manner to obtain
whatever kind of placement they believe will best meet their child's
particular needs.
We also seek to enable parents' voices to be
heard by policy makers and to report to policy makers on the concerns
that parents express to us. In this way we hope to have a positive
influence on legislation and practice.
As part of this, we regularly undertake surveys
and research with parents to inform our policy work. In January
2003, Contact a Family carried out a web based survey of parents
visiting the Contact a Family website and invited them to tell
us about their experiences of the education system and whether
they felt that their children had been discriminated against at
all.
In total 1,688 parents visiting the Contact
a Family website completed the questionnaire. The results are
as follows:
What sort of school is attended?
Child at mainstream school
| 52% |
| Child at special school | 22%
|
| Child at special unit | 5% |
| Child in residential school | 3%
|
| Other/not given | 18% |
Age of child
3-5 | 20%
|
| 6-8 | 19% |
| 9-11 | 21% |
| 12-16 | 24% |
| 17-19 | 5% |
| Not Given | 11% |
How satisfied are you with the overall quality of your child's education?
Very satisfied
| 25% |
| Quite satisfied | 27% |
| Not sure/not given | 29% |
| Quite dissatisfied | 11% |
| Very dissatisfied | 8% |
How well does your child's teacher understand your child's needs?
Very well
| 26% |
| Quite well | 24% |
| Not sure/not given | 23% |
| Not very well | 18% |
| Not at all | 9% |
Does your child get all the extra help they need to make the most of schooling?
Definitely yes
| 23% |
| Probably yes | 21% |
| Not sure/not given | 21% |
| Probably not | 22% |
| Definitely not | 13% |
Has your child been discriminated against in the education system?
Definitely yes
| 17% |
| Probably yes | 17% |
| Not sure/not given | 30% |
| Probably not | 19% |
| Definitely not | 16% |
How aware do you think you are about disability discrimination laws in education?
Very aware
| 17% |
| Quite aware | 20% |
| Not sure/not given | 27% |
| Not very aware | 24% |
| Very unaware | 12% |
| |
It is disappointing, but perhaps not surprising, that only
a third of parents could describe themselves as very or quite
aware of laws around disability discrimination in education and
that a third felt that their child had probably or definitely
been discriminated against at school.
We also undertook an exercise to look at all enquiries on
education which have been made to the helpline this year January-August
2005 in order to be able to inform the Committee what the current
issues for parents are. The Committee needs to bear in mind that
parents would not telephone a helpline to report that all was
going well with their child's education. The cases reported below
are therefore only representative of those parents who are in
some form of difficulty with their child's education.
Total associations between enquiries and keywords (within
date range)
| Education general | 183
|
| Education general | 183 |
| Choosing A School | 28 |
| Disability Discrimination and Education |
17 |
| Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) |
18 |
| Educational Assessment | 47
|
| Exclusion From School | 12
|
| Funding | 9 |
| Further Education | 4 |
| Gifted Children | 1 |
| Home Based Education | 12 |
| Hospital Education | 0 |
| Inclusive Education | 4 |
| Parent Partnerships | 80 |
| Portage | 1 |
| Post 16 Transition in Scotland (factsheet)
| 9 |
| SEN-England (factsheet) | 131
|
| SEN-Scotland (factsheet) | 9
|
| SEN-Wales (factsheet) | 6 |
| Sencos | 0 |
| Special Educational Needs Tribunals | 13
|
| Special Schools/Special Education | 56
|
| Statementing/Record Of Needs | 41
|
| Teaching Methods | 0 |
| Transition (Education) | 16
|
| Transition in England and Wales (factsheet)
| 47 |
| Total enquiries for Education | 744
|
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Of the 744 enquiries for education, we looked in more detail
at 94 enquiries where a detailed response was required and we
have more complete information in the form of a case record.
20 of these concerned getting insufficient support at mainstream
school
For example: A 12-year-old with ADHD was finding his parents'
separation difficult to cope with. There had been a history of
domestic violence and the mother had fled to a refuge. The son
missed quite a bit of school and is now finding it very hard to
settle back in to school. Mother has asked the school for support
for him but the school aren't even prepared to listen, let alone
do anything to help the son. Mother is now seeking an assessment
Four getting insufficient help at special school
For example: A 13-year-old boy at special school has been
told he is "too large" to go swimming with the other
school children unless his dad comes to put him in the hoist as
he is too heavy to lift. Parents are very concerned as he is a
wheelchair user and this is the only exercise he gets.
10 cases where the LEA refused to issue a statement
For example: A five-year-old girl was displaying severe behavioural
difficulties, lighting fires, cutting through electric cables
at home and was disruptive and aggressive at school and violent
towards both children and adults. Parents have tried using behaviour
strategies but to no effect. Mother dreads going to pick her up
from school for fear of being told of yet another incident. There
was a discussion with the school about a referral to educational
psychology but nothing has happened yet. Despite all these issues,
a statement has so far been refused. The family are considering
an appeal.
10 cases where the parent was looking for funding for a private
placement
For example: daughter with learning difficulties had been
attending mainstream, LEA were considering statementing and parents
decide she would be better in and independent school. The family
are paying an additional amount on top of the feed for additional
learning support. This is a struggle and parent wanted advice
about whether there were any funding streams which would contribute
towards the costs of this.
Nine cases where the parent had not understanding the statementing
process
For example: A family were moving from Northern Ireland to
the East Midlands. In Northern Ireland they were getting excellent
support for their daughter who has visual impairment and other
physical disabilities including arthritis. The new school they
had chosen had said they could meet her needs. However the LEA
have now said that in their opinion the daughter has no additional
support needs and can manage perfectly well without assistance.
Family are unaware of English law and practice regarding statementing
process and wanted information about appeals.
Five cases of severe bullying
For example: A single father bringing up a son with autism.
He was attending a mainstream school and moved up to the local
comprehensive at age 11. He was being bullied several times a
day and was taken to accident and emergency on one occasion. His
psychologist wrote to the school to ask them to intervene but
the school still denied there was a problem. The child attempted
suicide mid way through year 7. The child received no education
for over a year and now receives one day per week home tuition.
Three cases where the school was lacking information on dealing
with a disability or medical condition
For example: A school requested information on a condition
which causes delayed toilet training. The school had been minded
to refuse entry to the child until she was toilet trained, unless
her mother would come to the school to clean and change her whenever
required, and only agreed to reconsider when we pointed out that
this may well be viewed as disability discrimination.
Three cases where the parent was considering or undertaking
home schooling or tuition
For example: Mother phoned up about a teenage daughter in
London with systemic lupus. She receives home tuition combined
with part time attendance at school as she is sometimes very ill.
She is flourishing on this system and expects to get good GCSE
grades. Home tuition will finish at the end of GCSE year and the
LEA say they do not provide it for 16-18 year olds under any circumstances.
Contact a Family subsequently confirmed with the LEA that this
is indeed their position. Daughter wants to continue in education
until at least age 18. Parents want to challenge the LEA as this
in effect means that seriously ill pupils cannot receive an A
level education.
10 cases where the child had been excluded, or was under threat
of exclusion
For example: An 11-year-old boy in Greater Manchester with
ADHD had been excluded five times since transferring to secondary
school. The transition seems to have unsettled him, as he had
never been excluded from primary school. He is currently on a
four week exclusion. He is statemented and receives 17 hours of
support per week but school want more support. The LEA refused
and the school said he cannot come back without the additional
hours of support they think he needs.
Two enquiries about the availability of particular courses
For example: A young deaf woman with moderate learning difficulties
had been doing a drama course at 6th form which she was enjoying.
The course was cancelled and as a result the young woman had started
to self harm and express suicidal thoughts.
Six cases about home school travel
For example: A parent rang concerning her son's taxi journey
to school. The same firm has been taking him for six years and
he has developed a good relationship with the staff. The LEA has
put the contract up for competitive tender and the mother has
been told by the taxi firm that they did not get the contract.
Mother has heard nothing from LEA, has not been consulted and
the school term is due to end in a couple of weeks, leaving her
uncertain what will happen after the summer. Her son is on his
third school in eight years-the other two having been closed and
this is the one aspect of his schooling that has some consistency.
12 cases of parents struggling to choose between mainstream
or special school or having difficulties with moving between schools
For example: A family in the South West were very concerned
about making a choice as to where their child went to school.
They do not have a clear understanding of what the differences
might be between a mainstream school and a special school and
what kind of support and help their child would receive in each.
They said that the mainstream teachers seemed terrified of their
son and when they were shown the "special needs department"
it appeared to be two very dark rooms in the basement. But then
an educational psychologist said that they were veering towards
choosing mainstream for their own benefit, "to feel that
their child was normal". Parents are now very confused and
unsure what is the best option.
All of these examples illustrate the kinds of problems which
parents have with the complex processes around Special Educational
Needs. In many cases, the parent simply does not understand the
process, what their rights are and the timescales which need to
be adhered to. Contact a Family produces information factsheets
for parents which explain the law and the processes which apply.
Samples are enclosed for the Committee's information.
In other cases, parents say that they find the school or
the LEA obstructive, trying to save money and certainly not thinking
creatively about how they could meet the child's needs. It will
doubtless be some considerable time before the provisions of the
Disability Discrimination Act are understood and the culture of
disability equality is firmly embedded in everything that is done
for a child and his or her family.
In other cases, lack of staff means long waits for appointments
such as Educational Psychology or Speech Therapy. Parents feel
very anxious that early chances for their child's behaviour or
language to improve are slipping away as the months go on.
The evidence from our helpline is that the current drive
to move away from statements is not welcomed by parents who value
having set out what their child's rights are. We feel that on
the evidence from our helpline it will be a long time before parents
feel confident enough in the goodwill of the school and LEA not
to feel the need to have a statement.
When we talk to parents at support groups, social events
and workshops they give us the following key messages:
They strongly feel that the emphasis should be on the potential
and achievements of pupils with disabilities. There are educational,
social and moral grounds for educating disabled children alongside
their peers but inclusion needs to be properly supported. Statementing
doesn't always deliver the specialist support their children need.
This often has to be hard-fought for and parents describe constant
battles with authority and bureaucracy. There is some concern
that special schools can't offer a broad curriculum, have limited
academic focus and are isolated and isolating, over protective
and stigmatising.
Some parents feel that special schools provide an environment
that is more able to deliver health and intimate personal care
and more tolerant of behaviour difficulties. Smaller class sizes
are very important to some parents who feel that their child would
not, or has not been able to cope, in the larger and busier environment
of a mainstream school. Some have found that staff in mainstream
schools have negative attitudes. Some parents believe that league
tables may affect mainstream schools attitudes to pupils with
SEN. They also tell us that schools are reluctant to accept children
without statements. Statements are seen as a "dowry".
Some parents also tell us of horrific examples of bullying of
pupils who are "different".
Placements certainly need to be flexible and support the
return to mainstream school when appropriate. Most parents agree
that some places need to be reserved for intensive intervention
and some those with the most complex needs.
September 2005
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