top of page
Search

(UK) Isle of Wight: Council denies SPED plan to autistic boy with multiple disabilities

June 7, 2021, Isle of Wight: County Press: Isle of Wight Council 'refusing' eight-year-old suitable education https://www.countypress.co.uk/news/19355727.isle-wight-council-refusing-eight-year-old-suitable-education/

A MOTHER is battling with the Isle of Wight Council to get her son an education which will see him flourish. In a fight to get an education, health and care plan (EHCP) for her son, Caiden, Freya Sadler has said she is stuck in a situation where the council are refusing to assess him, with the authority passing the responsibility onto others. The Isle of Wight Council said, however, EHCPs are issued only in exceptional circumstances. Eight-year-old Caiden has learning disabilities, including ADHD and autism, which means he finds going to school traumatic, upsetting and overwhelming; so much so that he has been refusing to go and is taught at home by his mum using materials provided by Medina House. With such complex needs, which also includes hypermobility and communication issues, Caiden's progression through education since Reception has been stunted, falling nearly five years behind classmates. When he was attending mainstream school, at Oakfield Primary, violent meltdowns meant in one term, Caiden was excluded ten times. Freya says the council is refusing an EHCP assessment which could provide more support for Caiden, through additional funding for more learning provisions, helpers or even a place at a special needs school. This is despite the fact he has a doctor's note saying he may not be suited for mainstream education,... Latest figures from the Department for Education show in 2020, the Isle of Wight Council was the 12th highest local authority in the country to refuse an EHCP assessment, refusing to conduct 105, or 37.2 per cent, of assessments. The Isle of Wight Council was also ranked as the fifth-highest authority to not issue an EHCP after assessment — with 17.8 per cent resulting in no plan….


bottom of page