Children with special educational needs are being “segregated” and left to struggle in the wrong schools because councils are trying to “save on costs”, parents have told Sky News. 

Maire Leigh Wilson, whose four-year-old son has Down’s syndrome, says she “shudders to think” where he would be now had she not been in a “constant battle” with her council.

“I think he would probably just be at the back of a classroom, running around with no support and no ability to sign or communicate,” she said.

Mrs Leigh Wilson wanted her son Aidan to go to a mainstream school with additional specialist support, but her council, who decide what is known as a child’s Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP), wanted him to attend a special school.

The number of EHCPs being appealed by parents has risen “massively”, according to education barrister Alice De Coverley.

She said councils are struggling to meet the volume of demand with “stretched budgets”, and parents are also more aware of their ability to appeal.

Mrs De Coverley said more than 90% of tribunals are won by parents, in part because councils do not have the resources to fight their cases.

She said, in her experience, parents of children with special educational needs will put “anything on the line, their homes, their jobs”.

On whether she thinks the system is rigged against parents, Mrs De Coverley said: “I’m not sure it’s meant to be. But I think that parents are certainly finding it very tough.”

She added the number of “unlawful decisions” being made by local authorities means parents who can afford it are being “utterly burnt out” by legal challenges.

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Mrs Leigh Wilson’s case was resolved before making it to court.

Her council, Hounslow in southwest London, said they complete more than four in five new EHCPs within the statutory 20-week timescale, twice the national average.

Hounslow Council said they “put families at the heart of decision-making” and young people in the area with special educational needs and disabilities achieve, on average, above their peers nationally.

They admitted there are areas of their offer “that need to be further improved” and they are “working closely with families as a partnership”.

“We have a clear and credible plan to achieve this, and we can see over the last 18 months where we have focused our improvement work, the real benefits of an improved experience for children, young people, and their families,” a Hounslow Council spokesman said.

He added the council had seen the number of EHCPs double in the last decade and they “share parents’ frustrations amid rising levels of national demand, and what’s widely acknowledged as a broken SEND system”.

Emma Dunville, a friend of Mrs Leigh Wilson whose son also has Down’s syndrome, describes her experience trying to get the right education provision for her child as “exhausting mentally and physically”.

She said: “For the rest of his life we’ll be battling, battling, battling, everything is stacked up against you.”

Unlike Mrs Leigh Wilson, Mrs Dunville wanted her son Albie to go to a special school, but she had to wait more than a year for an assessment with an education psychologist to contribute to the council’s decision, which meant she missed the deadline for an EHCP.

“The people making these decisions just don’t see that all children with Down’s syndrome are totally different and can’t be seen as the same.”

The guidelines are that if there are not enough local authority-employed education psychologists they should seek a private assessment, but her local authority did not do that.

Mrs Dunville said her son has been “segregated” in a mainstream school, where they are “trying their best” but “it’s just not the right setting”.

A man has been arrested after a woman in her 80s was killed in a Christmas Day motorway crash.

A white Ford Fiesta and a black Volkswagen Tiguan collided on the A1(M) near Darlington just after 8.30pm, North Yorkshire Police said.

The passenger of the Ford Fiesta, a woman in her 80s from the Durham area, suffered serious injuries and died at the scene.

The car’s driver, a man in his 80s from the Durham area, was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.

The driver of the Volkswagen, a man in his 20s from the Durham area, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

He has now been released under investigation.

The motorway was closed until around 8am on Boxing Day for collision investigators and National Highways to assess the road surface.

It is now open in both directions but with a lane closure still in place as of 9.30am.

Police have appealed for witnesses and dashcam footage of the crash, which happened on the northbound carriageway between Junction 57 (A66(M) junction) and Junction 58 (Merrybent).

The force also thanked members of the public who assisted at the scene.

Two women have died following reports of a stabbing in Milton Keynes on Christmas Day, police have said.

A dog injured in the incident in Bletchley also died after being taken to the vets.

A man and a teenage boy suffered serious injuries.

A 49-year-old man from Milton Keynes has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder and remains in custody.

Officers were called to a block of apartments in Santa Cruz Avenue just after 6.30pm on Christmas Day following reports of a stabbing.

The two women, aged 38 and 24, died at the scene, Thames Valley Police said. Their next of kin have been informed.

The injured man and teenage boy were taken to hospital and are both in a stable condition.

Police said the parties are known to each other.

Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Brangwin said: “Firstly I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the families of the women who have tragically died in this shocking incident.

“We have launched a double murder investigation, which may be concerning to the wider public; however, we have made an arrest and are not looking for anyone else in connection with this incident and the parties are known to each other.”