Child with SEN was out of education for four months after Doncaster Council’s failure to provide

The council has agreed to take remedial action after the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman ruled that it failed to meet its duty to provide adequate schooling for a child with special educational needs.

Nine-year-old Gabriel Seivewright was left without any educational provision for nearly four months after his family moved to Doncaster last year.

After discovering that no suitable schools in the area could offer Gabriel a place, the council failed to take action and offer alternative provision, the ombudsman stated.

In July 2023, Gabriel’s mother, Angela Seivewright, informed the council that her family would be moving to Doncaster, later confirming a September move-in date.

She stated that her son would require a suitable school place based upon his support needs detailed in his Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP), which was passed on to the council.

An EHCP is a document formulated for some children with special educational needs or disabilities which outlines their needs and what arrangements should be made to meet them.

When a child moves to a new authority area, the council has a duty to secure specialist educational provision as outlined in their EHCP within 15 days of becoming aware of their moving date.

Mrs Seivewright informed the council of a particular independent school she wanted Gabriel to attend, noting that he had not been in mainstream education since four years old.

The council consulted with the school as well as several others in both the mainstream and independent sectors, however all were unable to offer Gabriel a place.

No further action was taken by the council for a month until Mrs Seivewright requested for alternative educational provisions to be made in October.

A tutor for Gabriel was set to begin in November 2023 however failed to attend, Mrs Seivewright stating the council did not attempt to find a replacement.

She added the council “repeatedly pressured” her to accept a place at a mainstream school with a Social Emotional and Mental Health Needs (SEMH) hub – a council strategy to provide specialist care staff at mainstream schools in order to reduce the number of children requiring independent school placements.

Mrs Seivewright said that she felt “bullied” by the council’s repeated attempts after she had informed them that mainstream education was unsuitable.

While Gabriel continued to be out of education, Mr and Mrs Seivewright were both working full-time jobs and were forced to reduce their hours to care for him.

Mrs Seivewright said: “It was a very hard and dark season and Gabe was becoming more reclusive the longer he was out of any education and interaction.”

After a formal complaint to the council failed to create progress, Mrs Seivewright brought her complaint to the ombudsman which reached a decision last month.

The ombudsman ruled that the council was prompt in its initial attempt to secure a school place, however it failed to take immediate action to secure alternative provision once this was unsuccessful.

It added that the council’s records of its actions following this are “disappointingly unclear.”

Mrs Seivewright said: “We are just one family of many who have to advocate constantly for our disabled child, our case was handled well by the Local Government Ombudsman, not as many families are as fortunate and our hearts go out to them.”

“As working parents of a special needs child it’s hard enough trying to juggle the challenges without being ignored, threatened and bullied by the very council that’s supposed to support you.”

The council agreed to pay a total £1,750 to Mrs Seivewright to recognise the impact of Gabriel being out of education and the avoidable distress the family suffered.

It further agreed to formally apologise to Mrs Seivewright and issue written reminders to staff of the council’s duties when a child with an EHC plan moves into its area.

Gabriel was offered a place at an independent school in mid-January and has been in attendance since.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service has contacted Doncaster Council for comment.