I'm being forced to go to COURT to fight for my son's school place – the council won't give me one & it's ILLEGAL
A MUM is so desperate to secure a school place for her son she is taking her fight to court.
Rebecca Horsley said the council has agreed 11-year-old Sam requires specialist education to help him with his learning difficulties – but he has not yet been offered a single spot.
The youngster is due to finish at Langafel Primary School in Longfield, Kent, in September.
And despite making good progress, Sam, who has autism and struggles with communication, faces being left behind if he is out of specialist schooling for too long.
Full-time worker Rebecca, 39, now faces the prospect of teaching her son at home – or taking Kent County Council to court.
She told KentOnline: "They've offered us nothing.
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"They're saying he needs to go to a special school, and I'm saying the same thing, so why are we going to court?
"They're wasting thousands of pounds of taxpayer's money."
She also claimed the failure to offer an adequate school place is illegal.
"The option of keeping him at home is against the law, because the law is every child is has the right to education at a suitable school," Rebecca added.
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Teacher Rebecca said families are allowed to apply for a place at just one school, so she opted for Milestone – a Special Educational Needs (SEN) primary in nearby New Ash Green.
Despite meeting Sam's needs, the school is at capacity and cannot take on any new students.
Rebecca said she received a letter saying he could attend the local comprehensive, they said they couldn't take him because he follows a different curriculum and requires speech therapy.
The council agreed, but then told her there weren't any spaces, so she could "home school him or go to court".
Rebecca said homeschooling is "not realistic" for her family as she and her partner Gareth both work full time, and Sam is entitled to professional special education and speech therapy.
Plus, Sam is "excited about going to big school" and "needs to be learning with children like him".
Rebecca added: "Essentially for autistic children, they need to prepare for big changes, and there's nothing I can tell him at the moment.
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"I just think KCC should be able to help. I just get the impression that straight away they say they'll go to tribunal."
The Sun has approached Kent County Council for comment.
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