We were pleased to work with our clients, Jen & Steve, and Contact this week to challenge an attempt to cut #shortbreak services via a flawed consultation. In response to our correspondence Derbyshire Council have withdrawn the proposal and will re-consult. #HappyFriday !

Disabled children and young people (and their parents/carers) are not to blame for poor inclusion and commissioning failures that lead to increased transport costs. Let’s have a grown up conversation about their right to education.
bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politi…

> When does the CoP get involved in cases where a person stops eating and drinking?
> Is there a right to stop eating/drinking?
> What type of considerations apply in these cases?

I answer these questions here (thanks to @capacitylaw for sense check)

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2024/03/26/whe…

This week I was paid £77 on a legal aid case from 2017 - an important case for a survivor of child sexual abuse.

7 years delay in payment; thousands still outstanding; many hours wasted arguing with the LAA; & the sum is way below minimum wage for the work.

Legal aid is broken.

JOB - Disability Rights UK is recruiting a 'Covid-19 Inquiry Manager', 3 days per week, £39k pro rata. uk.jora.com/job/Manager-ef…

For anyone interested in women at the bar and why optics and tone matter: men on average earn more than women from the moment they stand up in court on their first day. They then earn more at every level and across every practice area. Our best women (KCs) earn 29% less than men.

Absolutely accurate, except I try to keep my initial free advice short

Excited to be spending #InternationalWomensDay tomorrow coaching the girls at two local primary schools with Seaford Town FC #LetGirlsPlay

Exciting news -we have a paralegal vacancy come up working with Alex Terry in my PLHR team in #Newcastle on all matters around COP,inquests,judicial review, human rights,civil liberties -pls do share this link with anyone who may be interested - careers.irwinmitchell.com/jobs/vacancy/p… #JobAlert

Do you work in a local authority SEND team?

Book now for our SEND law training day for local authorities on 14 May (virtually, via Zoom).

Register here: ipsea.org.uk/Event/send-law…

I share Judge McConnell’s concerns. Unlike the immigration tribunal, anyone can set themselves up as a ‘SEND Tribunal Representative’ and charge parents, without having to meet any minimum standards. I hope the Tribunal looks to change this.

Judge McConnell says it’s not always clear to Tribunal on what basis a local authority has made a decision. Tribunal now requires panel meeting notes/minutes to be disclosed in evidence. Decisions MUST be made in accordance with law not local policy. #senlawconf

I spent some time trawling through recently upheld parental complaints to the SEND ombudsman

There were shocking examples of councils not understanding laws correctly, children being out of education for two years, whole families needing counselling because of failings...

This sounds super technical, but it’s incredibly important from a disability rights perspective - you can only properly decide if someone has capacity to take a particular decision if you know what the relevant information is for that type of decision

A young Court of Protection lawyer traces the origins of a legal career in experience as an inpatient on an anorexia unit. BLEMI

Meeting 'E' + reading the COP judgment in her case changed everything...

openjusticecourtofprotection.org/2024/03/03/a-t… via Open Justice Court of Protection Project

Next week our Caroline Barrett and @jen_t_wright are in the High Court with counsel Steve Broach KC and Katherine Barnes challenging part of the government’s consultation on the SEND Green Paper, about reforms to the way students with #SEND are supported. [1/3]

Amongst the many problems with a delay of almost a year in determining Tribunal appeals is that when you are appealing the contents of an EHC Plan, that Plan has to be reviewed within the year…

A 2019-20 survey found that in 96% of cases where a letter was sent under the judicial review pre-action protocol in relation to local authority failings, that resulted in the local authority taking all or some of the steps requested: councilfordisabledchildren.org.uk/sites/default/…