Surrey’s six Lib Dem MPs – including Epsom & Ewell MP Helen Maguire - are requesting an urgent meeting with Surrey County council Leader Tim Oliver over the crisis in SEND provision in the County.

The County Council’s poor record on Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) provision has been brought to a head by a deadline imposed on parents by the County Council.

That deadline gives parents a month to decide on their child’s placement preference whereas last year the deadline was March of the following year.

“This is an unacceptably short timeframe for parents to choose their child’s school, especially during a time when schools are closed for the summer holidays. We request that you return the deadline for school preference selection to March”, say the MPs.

The issue of the deadline is just the tip of the iceberg for the Lib Dems who have pointed out to Oliver how dire SEND provision is in the county. They write:-

“Surrey is one of the poorest-performing authorities in the country:

• Decline in EHCP timeliness – Timeliness has dropped from 57.6% in 2017 to 16.2% in 2023, compared to a national average of 50.3%.

• Compromise in EHCP quality - To recover timeliness, there has been a severe compromise in quality of EHCP’s, with appeals increasing from 2.5% in 2014 to 4.7% in 2023, one of the highest appeal rates in the country. Parents won 98.3% of these appeals, showing a poor decision-making process.

• Disproportionately high level of complaints - 230 cases escalated to the Local Government Ombudsman during 2023, which is 10 times the national average”.

Recently elected Epsom & Ewell MP Helen Maguire said, “While meetings with MPs are scheduled, the new deadline means we need an earlier face to face meeting. Surrey County Council’s record on helping some of the most vulnerable in our society is a total disgrace and we’re not prepared to let this go unchallenged.

“If this Tory led County Council is not prepared to provide excellence in SEND provision, then we will find Liberal Democrat candidates for the new CC elections who will.”