education
Contribution thanks to
SEND ACTION GROUP
Central Bedfordshire SEND Action Group
cbcsendaction@gmail.com fb@ CentraBedfordshireSENDAction
Why did parents protest at council headquarters? he Central Bedfordshire SEND Action Group was T formed in January 2020 by a group of SEND parents who were frustrated by CBC’s failures in relation to their children’s education.
The group quickly grew as parents joined together to support each other and to start taking group action to highlight CBC’s poor treatment of their children. To date, the group has 1,487 followers. Whilst the admins of the group remain anonymous due to fears that speaking out could affect decisions made about their own children’s education, many parents share their experiences on our posts, and several have spoken on our behalf at Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny meetings. The range of failures experienced by these families is vast but includes issues such as the shortage of specialist school places and lack of expertise in mainstream schools. CBC not meeting their statutory obligations in terms of assessment of children with special educational needs and not writing and reviewing their Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in line with legal requirements. Sadly, many parents have had to take CBC to tribunal in order to secure a school placement that can meet their child’s needs. This comes at great expense to the parent; despite the fact the CBC lose around 98% of appeals! Since Ofsted and the CQC inspected CBC’s SEND service and deemed there to be many significant weaknesses, the action group has tirelessly worked to inform parents of their legal rights and support them with their individual situations. We also share regular posts to raise awareness and highlight CBC’s failures. The formation of the group came out of necessity because individual parents were unable to stand up to the local authority alone. It was inevitable that SEND parents would eventually ‘build an army’ in order to be heard. Our posts have a reputation for being somewhat blunt - this is because in our experience, speaking directly and politely to CBC is completely ineffective! Several opposition councillors have supported our journey over the last two years. Councillors Mark Smith (Independent) and Antonia Ryan (Labour) who both sit on the Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, along with Independent Councillors Hayley Whitaker, John Baker and Adam Zerny who regularly speak up for us at various council meetings. Our hope is that the protest on 7th September which was attended by many parents, grandparents, and children, will make our plight feel more REAL to the council leaders and show them that we will not let our exceptional children be cast aside and forgotten. 8
Check out more content on our website: www.livinglifemagazine.co.uk
