[2025] UKUT 068 (AAC)

To ensure the rights and interests of X are protected, this Decision has been anonymised; and no report of this case shall be made that, directly or indirectly, may lead to the identification of X.

This is an appeal from the decision of the Education Tribunal for Wales (“the ETW”) (Judge Kelly Byrne, Specialist Member Catrin Lewis and Specialist Member Rhys Parri, “the ETW Panel”) dated 10 September 2024 allowing the appeal of the Respondents (Mr & Mrs X, the parents of X) against the decision of the Appellant local authority (“the Council”) to issue an Individual Development Plan (“IDP”) in relation to X’s Additional Learning Needs (“ALN”) in the terms that it did.

In particular, the Council seeks to appeal against the decision of the ETW Panel (i) to name School A in Section 2D of the IDP to secure X’s admission to that school (Ground 1), and (ii) to determine that X’s ALN required 27.5 hours of one-to-one Teaching Assistant (“TA”) support per week and specify that requirement in Section 2B of the IDP (Ground 2).

On 26 November 2024, the President of the ETW gave permission to appeal in respect of Ground 1, but refused permission in respect of Ground 2 (and other grounds, no longer pursued). The Council renewed its application for permission to appeal in respect of Ground 2; and, on 30 December 2024, I directed that that application (and, if granted, the subsequent appeal on that ground) be heard at the same time as the appeal in respect of Ground 1.

At the hearing, Laura Shepherd of Counsel appeared for the Council, and John Friel and Matthew Wyard, both of Counsel, appeared for Mr & Mrs X. I thank them all for their assistance.