Who makes the final decision about which type of school my child should go to?

Who makes the final decision about which type of school my child should go to?

Sandra Hutchinson (Editor, the Good Schools Guide: Special Educational Needs) gives expert video advice on: Who makes the final decision about which type of school my child should go to? and more...

The final decision obviously depends. If your child has a statement, it's really down to the local authority to what's named on the statement, which obviously you can appeal against. Otherwise it's down to you if it's the school that you choose - if you're choosing an independent school and they agree to your child going there and you're happy to shell out the fees, then that's great and that's where the child will go. With mainstream schools you can express a preference for a school. It doesn't mean that you're going to get your child into that school, regardless of whether they have special needs or not - it just depends on the whole admissions criteria and how well you fulfill that admissions criteria, and therefore how far up on the list you are.