How DRS can help

With a task as important as arranging a child’s education, many emotions are invoked when problems are encountered.

This is especially true if a child has special educational needs (SEN) and there is disagreement between parents and the local authority or a child’s school about how those needs will be met. 

All local authorities (LAs) are required by law to make arrangements with a view to avoiding or resolving disagreements between the authority and parents of children in their area about the way LA and maintained schools carry out their responsibilities towards children and young people with SEN. They must also make arrangements with a view to avoiding or resolving SEN related disagreements between parents and certain schools. These arrangements must involve an independent element and LAs must make disagreement resolution services known to parents, schools and others they consider appropriate.

Disagreement Resolution is a way of solving problems that:

• Avoids the traditional judicial process without affecting other methods of appeal
• Can be used alongside and within the timescales for the tribunal process 
• Uses mediation as a positive way of resolving conflict.

Mediation is voluntary, independent and confidential. All the key people are invited to discuss the issues and with the help of a mediator, to try to identify actions that will help to resolve or partially resolve the disagreement.

Disagreements about special educational needs will vary depending on each individual; whether or not an assessment should be carried out, what special needs the child or young person has, how best to meet these needs and which school they should attend are just some examples. Mediation can help to not only resolve such issues, but also to provide the opportunity to restore or improve the relationship between parents and the local authority or school. 

The aim is always to consider the needs of the child or young person first and keep the focus on the important issues. This inclusive group approach helps to maintain the high success rate mediation enjoys, along with other attributes such as the informality and low cost.

For more information on the process and what to expect, please see ‘Make a referral.'