CHILDREN with learning difficulties are being failed by a chaotic and unequal government support system, a report says.
MPs are concerned that a lost generation of those with special educational needs will fall through the cracks.
Kids with learning difficulties are being failed by a chaotic and unequal government support system, according to a report[/caption]
The Public Accounts Committee investigation has laid bare a postcode lottery where families in different local authorities have wildly varying experiences.
In London’s Lambeth, 71.5 per cent of education plans are drawn up on time within 20 weeks, but in neighbouring Southwark, the rate is 19.2 per cent.
The report also laments the arduous process parents are forced to battle through to secure support.
Some 98 per cent of cases taken to court go in favour of the families, leading MPs to slam a system throwing up “bureaucratic hoops for no good reason”.
The Sun’s long-running Give It Back campaign has been calling for the return of a £573million cut to funding for health and social care for special needs children.
Stephen Kingdom, campaign manager for the Disabled Children’s Partnership, said: “The PAC Report confirms what families and disabled young people have been telling The Sun for years.
“A broken system has been allowed to run and run, failing a generation of children, with no accountability for councils who break the law.
“What is particularly damning about this report is that it highlights the poor understanding the Government has of growing need and the reasons for increasing waits for diagnosis and support.”
