Primary school places: Parents outraged as Halifax children with complex needs including not being able to speak or feed themselves denied specialist school places

Siddal mum Jade Ditchfield heard last week that her four-year-old twins, Harper and Poppy, will have to go to a mainstream school.

That is despite the girls having a catalogue of health issues and complex needs including severe developmental delays, with Harper identified as having a learning age of 18 months and Poppy of between 12 and 18 months.

The twins were born 16 weeks early and spent the first 12 months of their lives on life support.

Poppy is autistic and non-verbal, and both require one-to-one support. Poppy is also a sensory seeker and has an extreme food restriction which means her diet consists of a certain brand of crackers, a particular brand of crisps and medicated milk.

"I know my girls won't cope in a mainstream school,” said Jade.

"It would traumatise them and me."

While she says the nursery they are currently at – Water’s Edge Nursery in Elland – have been “amazing”, she fears her only option will be to give up her job of ten years as a support worker and home school.

And she is not the only one. From reaching out on social media, she estimates there are around 50 Calderdale parents whose children have Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) but are still being denied a specialist school place.

Among them is Cheryl Bentley, from Ovenden. Her four-year-old grandson Elijah is non-verbal, needs nappies and cannot feed himself.

He too needs one-to-one support and has a learning age of 12 to 18 months. He also has pica and if not watched vigilantly, will try to eat cardboard.

But he is only being offered a place in a mainstream school.

"I think it’s outrageous,” said Cheryl. “It’s obvious that these children have complex needs because they have EHCPs.

“I don’t think the mainstream schools will be able to cope.

"The council knew how many children would need specialist school places because they know how many children with EHCPs they have on their books. Why hasn’t anything been done about it?”

Calderdale Council’s cabinet member for Children and Young People’s Services, Coun Adam Wilkinson, said: “The shortage of specialist school placements is a national issue and one which is reflected locally.

"The number of children in Calderdale requiring an EHCP has risen significantly, with subsequent demand for specialist places and ongoing pressures on council budgets.

"Despite these challenges, Calderdale Council is committed to supporting those with complex needs and has been working to expand and increase the number of specialist placements.

“Additional placements have been created within existing specialist providers at Highbury, Woodbank and Ravenscliffe schools. This includes the creation of Highbury hubs within Withenfields and Copley mainstream schools and additional spaces at Woodbank, in partnership with Luddenden Primary School.

"We’re considering options for a longer-term strategy to address continued growing demand, including increasing primary and secondary specialist placements. There are also plans for additional alternative provision.”

“Whilst it's not always possible to agree all the requests for specialist places, we ensure that all children have a school placement allocated.”