"My autistic son needs more help - but we've been told he doesn't fit in any school" - Caddington mum's appeal to council
The mum of a five-year-old boy living with autism in Caddington says he is stuck in a mainstream school that cannot meet his educational needs.
For months, Jennifer Morrison has urged Central Bedfordshire Council to find a suitable place where Ethan can learn properly.
Although Ethan has one-to-one support at his current school, he cannot access the curriculum and is often separated from classmates. He is non-verbal and uses a specialist iPad app to communicate.
Jennifer, a specialist SEN teacher, said: “He does need more help, and he needs peers. He needs children of a similar ability to him. There's nobody in his class that he can relate to.
“He is able to spell words, and is starting to be able to read words. Everything is on his terms. He is quite bright. It's just getting him to do things.
“We looked at other schools, and they've all said his ability is too high, or he's too low. So we're left with him being a unicorn. He doesn't fit anywhere.”
Since he was 15 months old, Jennifer has had to fight for the right care for her son, applying for an EHCP before he even started nursery.
And despite the council agreeing earlier this year that Ethan requires a specialist placement, no suitable school has been found.
The mum claims her calls and emails go “ignored for weeks at a time,” forcing her to take her issues to her MP and councillors, making the process of getting information about her son’s education ‘exhausting.
Central Bedfordshire Council’s executive member for children’s services, Cllr Steve Owen, acknowledged that some families face challenges in securing the right provision and ‘understands how difficult it can be’.
He said: “We are working closely with parents and schools to find the best solutions for each child and to increase the range of specialist provision available locally.”
But Jennifer has said her son is lucky to have a parent in the world of SEND to advocate on his behalf: “I often think to myself, God, Ethan’s lucky. He’s got a parent who knows what they’re talking about… There are so many children out there that are just left.”
For Jennifer, it is about giving Ethan what he deserves.
Jennifer said: “He has a right to an education that is suitable for him… they are denying it to him. If I don’t fight for him, no one will.”
Cllr Owen added: “We remain committed to ensuring we have the right places for our children, and our annual review of local school place planning needs will be shared later this year.
“We are also committed to improving communication and support so that every child can access the education they need to thrive.”
Jennifer’s request to the council is simple: “I would like them to be more open and honest with parents… I want him to have a specialist school place…
“But what I love most is for them to work with me, talk to me about it, not just ignore me.”