Law firm Mills & Reeve has hired disputes specialist Catherine Savage as a partner in its education team.

Three linked claims challenging so-called “safety valve” agreements reached by Devon County Council and Bristol City Council with the Department of Education are being heard in the High Court this week (28 – 30 January).

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has criticised Somerset Council for taking too long to put in place speech and language therapy for a teenager with special educational needs, following an earlier complaint.

An investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has revealed that a child with special educational needs missed months of education, despite Trafford Council identifying a suitable tutor within a fortnight of them leaving mainstream school.

The Upper Tribunal Administrative Appeals Chamber has found that the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) made an error of law in a case involving an education, health and care plan but has declined to set aside its decision.

Proposals in the Law Commission’s review of legislation on disabled children’s social care risk damaging unintended consequences and maintain an ineffective tribunal system, the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) and the Local Government Association (LGA) have said.

An Upper Tribunal judge has dismissed a Welsh council’s claim for judicial review of a review decision by the Education Tribunal for Wales (ETW) – finding that the “correct route of challenge” is by way of statutory appeal.

Two sets of claims to consider the compatibility with human rights of the Government’s introduction of VAT on private school fees have been joined and expedited, with a hearing expected to take place in the High Court before the end of April this year.

The Children’s Commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza, has highlighted a number of areas in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that need strengthening, while acknowledging that it lays a “strong foundation for change”.

The Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, has promised that key provisions of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 will be brought into force, whilst “burdensome” provisions will be scrapped.

A report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities has warned that two-fifths of councils in England are in danger of effective bankruptcy within 15 months, unless action is taken to improve the currently “unviable” SEND system.

The Local Government Association (LGA) has said it is “disappointed” that the education system will not be made a statutory safeguarding partner through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which is to have its second reading in Parliament today (8 Jan).

A multi-academy trust has been fined £300,000 after a 19-year-old student died as a result of a “series of management failures” at his special educational needs school.

The London Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC) has given notice of its intention to procure its next multi-provider framework agreement for the provision of legal services in England and Wales.

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which will introduce registers to identify children not in school, and unique identifier numbers for children across services, has been published by Government today (17 December).

The Local Government Association (LGA) has joined the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) in criticising proposals by the Tribunal Procedure Committee to change the rules on the handling of so-called ‘refusal appeals’, warning that they should not be implemented at a time when local SEND systems are under “significant pressure”.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched an investigation into suspected bid-rigging in relation to school improvement contracts.

Meaningful reform to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system is likely to require a “significant expansion” of the core SEND provision available in mainstream schools, an expansion of state-funded special school places, a geographic redistribution of funding, and maybe reducing the statutory obligations currently attached to EHCPs, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has…

A group of headteachers of special schools in Kent have asked lawyers to explore launching a judicial review claim against Kent County Council, which is pursuing plans to change the designation and admissions guidance for some of the special schools in the county.

Capital City College Group is to procure an agreement for the provision of professional legal services, with a key emphasis on employment tribunal services.

Outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are poor with a “fundamental mismatch” between the scale of demand for support and the level of resource, Ofsted has warned.

Two-thirds of school leaders are “dissatisfied” with existing guidance on supporting SEND pupils, with 68% regarding the creation of a national set of SEND standards as the “biggest priority area” for Government, according to a survey by law firm Browne Jacobson.

The Department for Education has confirmed that the Government will not enter any more safety valve agreements with councils in financial difficulty over their SEND budget, “pending wider reform of the whole system to prioritise early intervention”.

Three linked claims challenging so-called 'safety valve' agreements will now proceed to a final judicial review hearing early next year.

Norfolk County Council has called for a trial period where decisions in the SEND tribunal “must take account of” Local Inclusion Plans and safety-valve agreements.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) has called on the Government to provide it with extra powers to ensure they are fit for purpose and to address what it describes as “accountability gaps”.

The Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) has launched judicial review proceedings over a decision by the Department for Education to exclude colleges from this summer’s 5.5% school teacher pay award.

The Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) has described proposals by the Tribunal Procedure Committee to change the rules on the handling of so-called ‘refusal appeals’ as “undesirable” and “inappropriate”.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has recommended Worcestershire Council pay a remedy of more than £11,000 after a child with special educational needs missed out on five and a half terms of education due to failures by the authority.

A High Court judge has rejected a judicial review claim over a decision by a school governing body's disciplinary panel not to reinstate a teenage boy to his school following a permanent exclusion, which occurred as a result of “persistent breaches” of the school's behaviour policy.