Children and Young Persons Bill [HL]

Section 22 of the Children Act 1989 places local authorities, and therefore independent reviewing officers, under a duty to promote the educational achievement of looked-after children. As part of this, they should pay particular attention to the needs of those with special educational needs and promote their interests, including their educational interests, to the fullest extent. The noble Baroness is concerned that children in care may have less effective access to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal because, as she said, their social workers, as employees of local authorities, might be unlikely to appeal against their own authorities on behalf of such children. Let me say clearly that, if this were the case and appeals were not being made to the tribunal on behalf of these children when they should be, that situation would be unsatisfactory and would need to be addressed. We know that some cases are appealed by local authorities on behalf of children whom they look after. The issue is whether this is not done in other cases where it should be to best serve the interests of the looked-after child. In October, when the former Education and Skills Select Committee of another place published its report on special educational needs assessment and funding, I announced that we would be conducting research into parents’ experience of the SEN assessment, statementing and tribunal system. We will ask researchers to look at the position of those caring for looked-after children with SEN, including local authority social workers, and whether they are reluctant to appeal to the tribunal and, if so, why that might be. In the Care Matters White Paper, we announced that we had asked Ofsted to report on the progress of children in care with SEN in 2009-10 and that we would consider whether the arrangements for appeal to the tribunal on behalf of children in care should be reviewed. On the basis of these two reviews, we will wish to consider the case for extending the right of appeal in the way that the noble Baroness suggests, but we believe it right to wait for this further information and advice before we take a step with such radical implications as that set out by the noble Baroness.