Parents and Carers
- SEN Support in Mainstream Schools
- SEN Support in School Meetings
- Choosing a School or College
- Education Health and Care (EHC) Needs Assessments, Plans and Reviews
- Appeals and Mediation
- Attendance and Exclusions
- Transitioning Between Schools or Settings
- Early Years
- SEND Funding
- Transport to School and College
- Preparing For Adulthood (PfA)
- Making a Complaint
- Health Needs and Education
- Elective Home Education (EHE)
- School Admissions
- Disability Discrimination
- Children's Disability Register
Disability Discrimination
As a parent/carer of a child or young person with a disability, you have the right to make a disability discrimination claim to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal, if you feel that they have been discriminated against by their school or local authority (when the LA are the responsible body for a school).
To make an appeal you will need to demonstrate that your child or young person is classed as being disabled.
You can complain to the tribunal if you’re:
- someone with parental responsibility for a young person, or their foster parent, or carer
- a young person over school leaving age but under 18.
You can complain to the tribunal service about the following;
- a school, a nursery, or a pupil referral unit, maintained by a local authority
- an independent school
- a free school, including an academy.
You cannot complain to the tribunal about:
- a private nursery (unless it’s part of a school)
- a further education college
- an organisation using a school’s premises.
Disability discrimination claims in these matters are made to the county courts.
Claims by parents and young people against local authorities about the policies the authorities have adopted, also go to the county courts.
Firstly, you should raise the complaint with the school by following the school’s complaints process. School’s complaints procedures should be available on their website.
If this does not solve the problem, or you do not want to complain to the school first, you may be able to complain to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) tribunal.
The SEND Tribunal has produced guidance on bringing a claim of disability discrimination against a school: Complain about a school.
You must send your complaint to the tribunal within 6 months of the discrimination taking place. If you send your complaint later than 6 months, you’ll be asked to explain why.
Your complaint can include events which happened more than 6 months ago, as long as these directly relate to events that have taken place in the last 6 months. The tribunal must be able to treat events as a single complaint about one ongoing issue.
For example, if your child was permanently excluded from school after a series of fixed-term exclusions (which you believe were all due to the child’s disability) the tribunal could treat them as a single complaint.
It’s free to make a complaint to the SEND tribunal.
Download and complete:
- form SEND4A if you’re a parent making a complaint on behalf of a child
- form SEND4B if you’re a young person above school leaving age making a complaint for yourself.
The address to send it to is on the form.
You can include details on your form, of up to five witnesses you would like to bring with you to the hearing.
Contact the tribunal if you have any questions about completing the form. They cannot give you legal advice.
Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal
sendistqueries@justice.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 303 5857
Fax: 0870 739 4017
Find out about call charges
Check if you can get legal aid.
You can also get free help and advice from:
- the Independent Parental Special Education Advice (IPSEA)
- and by referring yourself to, Ask Us Nottinghamshire (SENDIASS).
Once the tribunal has registered your complaint, it will ask you and the school you’re complaining about, if you agree to the complaint being decided without a hearing.
If you both agree, the tribunal will make a decision about your complaint.
If you do not agree, the tribunal will send you a letter telling you if they’ll hold a hearing, and when and where it will take place.
You can complain to the Department for Education (DfE) about a school if the SEND tribunal will not handle your case.
You may be able to attend the hearing by video link. If you do need to attend in person, the hearing will be close to your home.
Download and fill in:
- form SEND7 to change your complaint, for example to ask for a different hearing date or add more witnesses
- form SEND8 to withdraw your complaint.
The hearing will usually be attended by:
- a judge and one or two other tribunal members
- a clerk
- someone representing the school or local authority you’re complaining about
- witnesses.
You do not have to go to the hearing, but if you do, you can ask questions and present the case yourself. If you’re complaining as a young person, your parents can come with you to the hearing.
Fill in the attendance form if you want to bring:
- someone to represent you
- someone to support you
- witnesses.
You can ask to have an interpreter at the hearing. They will translate, but they cannot represent you or give you legal advice.
You might be asked questions by:
- your legal representative (if you have one)
- the local authority’s representative
- the tribunal.
You will usually receive a letter or email with the tribunal’s decision within 10 working days of the hearing.
You might be able to claim travel expenses for going to the hearing.
Your witnesses might also be able to claim expenses for travel and loss of earnings.
If you bring a friend or relative to the hearing, you might also be able to claim for their travel costs.
The school or local authority must act on the tribunal’s decision within a set amount of time.
You can complain to the Local Government Ombudsman if a local authority does not keep to the decision.
Local Government Ombudsman
Telephone: 0300 061 0614
Find out about call charges
PO Box 4771
Coventry
CV4 0EH
The letter or email giving the tribunal’s decision will tell you how to apply to:
- get the decision ‘set aside’ (cancelled) if you think there’s been a mistake in the process
- ask the tribunal to ‘review’ the decision, for example, if your circumstances have changed since you received the decision, or if the decision contains a mistake.
You can also ask for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals) Chamber if you think the SEND tribunal has made a mistake and acted against the law.
You must ask for permission to appeal within 28 days of the date on the tribunal’s decision letter.
SEND Local Offer
The Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council SEND Local Offers are a great resource for finding events, support and activities in your area.
City Council County Council