A mother from Horfield, Bristol, says she has been left with "no options" after the city council failed to secure a secondary school place for her 11-year-old daughter, who has cerebral palsy and additional needs. Zoe, a single mother, said her daughter Olive has been turned down by 12 schools and faces the prospect of no school place in September.
Zoe, 44, said she has found it extremely difficult to navigate the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system. She refused a school offer in Cardiff due to the two-hour commute. Olive currently attends Filton Avenue Primary School three days a week and an alternative learning provider two days a week, which her mother described as "fantastic".
The council missed the deadline to finalise Olive's Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), which Zoe says is central to the process. She has approached Legal Aid to instigate an appeal against the council, fearing a tribunal could take over a year. "It seems a tribunal is the only way of getting a school," she said.
Alice Marshment, director of SEND Advocacy in Bristol, said there are not enough specialist places in the city. "We are seeing this problem again and again. It's deeply unfair on parents and children," she said, adding that parents often find the process combative rather than collaborative.
A Bristol City Council spokeswoman said the authority is working to find suitable places for children with complex needs. She noted that since 2021, the council has delivered 270 additional specialist provision places and plans to deliver at least 225 more by September 2025, bringing the total to 495.
Zoe has organised a peaceful demonstration on Bristol's College Green for SEND parents to campaign for better government funding. "Olive needs to be in a community of some kind, we are already very isolated," she said.
