A Somerset mother, Charlotte England, has been waiting nearly two years to secure the special needs support her child requires. Charlotte, 30, initially applied for a Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) assessment for her 9-year-old child in September 2023, but progress has been painfully slow.
Her child faces challenges including dyslexia and a developmental language disorder. Charlotte put in a request for an Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) on September 1, 2023. The EHCP process aims to identify the extra support a young person needs—for example, providing braille books for a blind pupil or easy-to-read fonts for a child with dyslexia.
Despite support from the school, Charlotte’s initial EHCP request was refused. She believes this issue extends beyond her own family. “This isn’t just about one child. The system is broken. There is no urgency, no accountability, and no support for families trying to do the right thing,” she said.
READ MORE: Revised Solar Farm Plans Proposed for Flood-Prone Glastonbury Travellers’ Site
READ MORE: Man Arrested on Suspicion of Attempted Murder After Serious Assault in Taunton
After appealing the decision, a tribunal was set for February 13 this year, nearly 18 months after the initial application. However, the very day before the hearing, the tribunal was cancelled when the local authority finally agreed to proceed with the EHCP assessment. Charlotte suspects this was merely a delay tactic. “They waited until the last moment to agree to something they should have done from the start,” she said.
Even now, the family still waits without a scheduled assessment date. With summer holidays approaching, which will cause further delays, Charlotte fears the wait could stretch to nearly two full years since her first request for support.
She expressed frustration not only for her own child but for many others: “This is not a paperwork issue—it’s about children’s lives. They are being failed, sidelined, and left to struggle without the support they are legally entitled to.”
Somerset Council acknowledged a surge in requests for special needs assessments. A spokesperson stated that the local authority has seen a 58% increase in assessments agreed compared to last year and is working on transformation efforts to meet rising demand.
“We can’t comment on individual cases,” the spokesperson said, “but Somerset Council is committed to improving the timeliness of assessments. Additional capacity is being secured, and we continue to lobby the government about legislation, funding, and guidance for SEND support. The government has indicated reform plans are due this autumn.”