[2024] UKUT 317 (AAC)

Both parties attended the appeal hearing and were represented. At the end of the oral hearing the parties were both provided with an opportunity to make written submissions and duly did so. The bundle before the FtT was 930 pages in length and included a variety of expert reports as well as other factual evidence, which the FtT listed as ‘including reports … from therapy professionals, behaviour analysts, psychiatrists and health professionals, annual review meetings and a social worker’. The FtT heard oral evidence from: Miss Hilary Whitlock (East Berkshire Continuing Healthcare), Miss Jacqui Steel, (Head of Campus Ambitious College), Miss Rebecca Askew (Educational Psychologist) and Mrs Helen Hannam (Associate Headteacher of School A).

The Appellant argued in closing submissions that:

The Local Authority acknowledge that [EM] has more to learn, but consider the question is whether [provision] should be delivered in a care environment or an educational one.

Ms Askew recommended a range of provision which she assumes should be available through continuing healthcare. Ms Askew considered it would be the carers who would be responsible for observing [EM]’s baselines and measuring his progress. However, the evidence before the FtT suggested this task was not part of a carer’s role. Therefore, EM could not access the education and training he needs without input from teaching staff, part of whose role will be to work with the carers on developing [EM’s] skills.