Plan to give special needs children the right to appeal

Jun 4 2008 by Sarah Miloudi, South Wales Echo

NEW plans could give children with special needs the right to appeal decisions about their education.

Under proposals being considered by the Assembly Government, children could be given the chance to appeal to the Special Needs Tribunal (SEN) for Wales if they meet the following three conditions:

A request for assessment of needs has already been made by a parent, school or agency;

a child’s parent has decided not to exercise their parental right to appeal;

and the child is deemed competent to appeal, and can show signs of awareness of their own circumstances as well as an ability to recognise the choices available to them.

The right to appeal Local Education Authority (LEA) decisions is currently restricted to parents, and whether parents do so is a matter of their own choice.

The majority of appeals relate to LEAs refusing to make assessments or statements determining the special education provisions for children, or are filed when parents do not agree with the contents of statements provided.

Education Minister Jane Hutt said the proposals were part of the Assembly Government’s commitment to promoting the involvement of youngsters with special educational needs in making decisions which could affect their lives.

If the plans go ahead, the minister said they would require the involvement of an independent and specialist advocacy service and the creation of child-friendly literature about the education system.