Robert
We used Richard's firm as we had already been through a protracted, painful process to get our eldest son assessed under the EHCP with our local authority. This had been a slow process, (often outside of the statutory milestones), with poor communication and little understanding of how we would get to the right outcome for our child. Whilst we had better experience with some of the individual practitioners who assessed our child, we also had frustrating experiences including an educational psychologist who did not actually see our child in person.
This resulted in an assessment and initial plan where we simply did not have any guidance as to what the right educational placement was and significant delays in even naming a placement even after most children already had their school places decided. Richard was a recommendation from the manager of the special needs playschool our child had been attending, and was an excellent one. He quickly assessed the situation, patiently and cogently set out our options and took us through the process of issuing a pre-action letter to the local authority to force them to name a placement.
Richard then took us through the process of both appealing against the placement named by the local authority, which was blatantly inappropriate, and into the tribunal process. He was diligent, patient with us and excellent at taking us through the process step by step. He was also excellent at dealing with the local authority and identifying when they were pushing boundaries and when to push back.
As a result of Richards and Bethans input, we were able to get the right assessments done independently, identify the right placement and get our child into an excellent specialist school that is already benefiting our son. Was it cheap? Probably not, although I suspect you could spend a lot more as well. But, more importantly, was it good value for money? Completely. Whilst we are lucky we can afford to do so, I fully believe that we would not have been able to achieve the outcome we did without Richard and his team, and our son would not have the placement and package of care that he did. Highly recommended.
Was this review helpful? Yes
Totally wonderful and kept us sane in an insane proses .
The SEN school legal proses varies from county to county and frustratingly East Sussex is one of if not the worst most unprofessional to deal with in everyone I know who has had to experience.
Richard and his team kept us in the loop enough and as balanced as we could be in the whirlwind of crazy that is this process.
I’m not going to lye this was stressful and expensive but SEN legal got us over the finish line as quickly as they could and knew exactly what to do were we would have failed just through Lack of experience on this process. My advise is do use a Lawer from the start and do use SEN legal they are friendly and professional and kind
( you will need that to get through it )
We worked with Richard,Jame and Bethan and I can’t fault any of there work it was thorough and Richard knew what to do and when to do it for the best result and also what to say when we lost the plot and talked us down several times . Thank you Richard and your team. We also talked allot with Carl in accounts who was also professional and helpful all the way through this proses and made it possible when things got tight towards the end and endured my rubbish email management without judgment
( outwardly anyway )
We are forever grateful thank you all
Shelly Gez Blue and Pepper
Lawyer named in this review: Bethan Hone
A representative from SEN Legal Limited responded to this review on 19 April, 2024
Thank you, Shelly! We're grateful for your kind words about Richard, Jamyi, Bethan, and Karl's professionalism and support throughout the challenging SEN legal process. We're glad we could assist you through the whirlwind and get you over the finish line. Your feedback means a lot, and we're here for you whenever you need us. Best Regards, SEN Legal Limited
Was this review helpful? Yes
Couldn’t have done it without you!
We contacted SEN Legal wanting to take the LA to tribunal over our son’s post 19 local offer and to update his EHCP to reflect his true needs. If anyone has been in this position you will know how daunting this is and how completely powerless you feel. From the very beginning everyone at SEN Legal was supportive and professional, guiding us through this trying and complex process. We were kept informed every step of the way (thank you Bethan!) and I couldn’t rate Melinda Nettleton and John (our Barrister) highly enough for how they transformed our son’s EHCP.
Due to the hard work and professionalism of SEN Legal our son is now happily attending Sense College with an EHCP which truly reflects his needs.
Words cannot convey how delighted we are over this result and we would encourage anyone in a similar situation to seek the same advice and support from the team at SEN Legal.
Lawyer named in this review: Bethan Hone
A representative from SEN Legal Limited responded to this review on 13 December, 2023
Dear Vicki, Thank you for sharing your experience! We're thrilled to have played a part in transforming your son's EHCP and ensuring he is now attending Sense College happily. We appreciate your kind words about Bethan, Melinda, and John. If you ever need further support or have recommendations, we're here for you. Best regards, SEN Legal Limited
Was this review helpful? Yes
Great service that achieved an outcome we could not on our own
We used Richard's firm as we had already been through a protracted, painful process to get our eldest son assessed under the EHCP with our local authority. This had been a slow process, (often outside of the statutory milestones), with poor communication and little understanding of how we would get to the right outcome for our child. Whilst we had better experience with some of the individual practitioners who assessed our child, we also had frustrating experiences including an educational psychologist who did not actually see our child in person.
This resulted in an assessment and initial plan where we simply did not have any guidance as to what the right educational placement was and significant delays in even naming a placement even after most children already had their school places decided. Richard was a recommendation from the manager of the special needs playschool our child had been attending, and was an excellent one. He quickly assessed the situation, patiently and cogently set out our options and took us through the process of issuing a pre-action letter to the local authority to force them to name a placement.
Richard then took us through the process of both appealing against the placement named by the local authority, which was blatantly inappropriate, and into the tribunal process. He was diligent, patient with us and excellent at taking us through the process step by step. He was also excellent at dealing with the local authority and identifying when they were pushing boundaries and when to push back.
As a result of Richards and Bethans input, we were able to get the right assessments done independently, identify the right placement and get our child into an excellent specialist school that is already benefiting our son. Was it cheap? Probably not, although I suspect you could spend a lot more as well. But, more importantly, was it good value for money? Completely. Whilst we are lucky we can afford to do so, I fully believe that we would not have been able to achieve the outcome we did without Richard and his team, and our son would not have the placement and package of care that he did. Highly recommended.
Lawyer named in this review: Bethan Hone
A representative from SEN Legal Limited responded to this review on 28 April, 2023
Hi Robert, Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are pleased that we were able to assist you, and we will ensure your comments are passed on to Richard and the team.
Was this review helpful? Yes