'Still no-one will give my son a chance at an education'

For many children across the country the new school year is well under way and half-term is already on a lot of people's minds.

But two Suffolk mothers are still fighting to get their children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) into a suitable classroom.

Roxanne and Xylina both previously told the BBC they had hoped their children would be in school by September, but they are still no further forward in their fight and continue to wait to present their cases to a tribunal.

Suffolk County Council said while it could not comment on specific cases, it recognised "that navigating the SEND system can be challenging and stressful".

Roxanne's six-year-old son Franklin is autistic and was rejected by three different specialised schools before the start of the new term in September.

She said she had been left "so sad" for him.

"It really does feel like a lot of people are telling me 'No, we don't want him actually, we can't deal with him'," explained Roxanne, who is from Martlesham.

"No one wants to teach my son or give him a chance."

Before the summer holidays, Franklin attended a mainstream school for just one hour of classroom time a day. This has been increased by 50 minutes per day now he is in Year 1.

Franklin received an autism diagnosis in November 2025, and his Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) was reviewed over the holidays after his teachers determined he was unable to settle.

In England, if a child or young person needs more support than is typically provided in mainstream schools, their parent or carer can apply for an EHCP.

It identifies their child's needs and sets out the support they should receive, with local councils responsible for ensuring the EHCP is followed.

The plan can stay in place up to the age of 25, as long as the young person remains in the education system.

"If he was in a SEND environment he may be able to reduce the amount of supervision that he requires and might not need to be one-to-one anymore," Roxanne continued.

"In terms of the local authority reaching out to new schools, I haven't heard anything at all.

"I'm just sort of stuck at the moment."

Xylina, from Felixstowe, said she had struggled to get a suitable school place for her seven-year-old daughter, Lyla.

Lyla, who is non-verbal, autistic and has complex sensory needs, requires constant supervision as she can sometimes run away.

Her previous mainstream school could no longer meet her needs, which Xylina agreed with.

Xylina began trying to get the council to find a different place in February, but she said "they don't answer your phone calls anymore, they don't answer your emails anymore".

"We've been going around and around in circles, basically trying to even get her a little bit of alternative provision," she said.

Lyla's EHCP states she should have three one-to-one sessions of speech and language therapy within a school setting, but because she does not have a school place, her mother says Lyla is missing out.

"So we're not even fulfilling what her EHCP says, even though the local authority said to me that they would at least give her the provision set out in her EHCP because it's a legal requirement."

The former mental health nurse said a tribunal date had been set for her child's case in November and the school she wanted Lyla to attend was currently oversubscribed.

The council said parents and carers had the right to challenge decisions through tribunals and it respected that process.

It said it was committed to improving its service and noted it had experienced a "significant increase in demand for SEND services" with the number of children needing an EHCP in the past year rising by 17%.

"Where a tribunal determines that changes are required, we will always work to implement its decisions," it added.

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