We invest a lot of our time, effort and money to ensure we receive the best education possible. Our time at school or higher education should be an enriching and rewarding experience. However, time spent at school, college or university can sometimes be a particularly distressing experience, especially for disabled pupils or students.
Discrimination in education
Disabled individuals can face direct or indirect prejudice when in education and unfortunately, this is not uncommon.
It is unlawful for education providers to treat you less favourably for a reason related to your disability or to fail to make reasonable adjustments to prevent you being placed at a substantial disadvantage.
The Equality Act 2010 makes it unlawful for a school, college or university to discriminate against a pupil/student in relation to:
- Admissions
- Provision of education
- Access to any benefit, facility or service
- Exclusions
Forms of discrimination
Discrimination in education may take two forms:
- Less favourable treatment of a disabled pupil/student, which the school/college/university cannot justify
- Failure to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to ensure the pupil/student is not at a substantial disadvantage, compared with other pupils/students at the educational institution
Education providers are expected to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to meet the needs of disabled pupils/students. They have an obligation to follow the Equality Act and keep abreast of the latest changes in the law.
Disability discrimination cases involving schools are heard by the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal. Cases involving further education colleges and universities are brought in the County Court. There is a strict 6 month time limit for bringing these cases.
Important things to consider
If you feel that you or your child is being discriminated against whilst in education, because of a disability, then a good place to start is by gathering evidence.
It may be helpful to keep a diary or a list, noting down instances of discriminatory acts or behaviour. Disability has a broad definition and is defined in the Equality Act 2010. When contacting a lawyer, you will invariably be asked the following questions to assess whether you have a claim:
- Does the pupil/student affected have a disability?
- Can you cite examples of prejudice, discriminatory acts or discriminatory behaviour?
- Have you already raised your concerns with the school directly?
If you answer ‘yes’ to any of these questions, it may be prudent to seek legal advice.
For our fees, please visit the Education Law Fees page.
Why use Fisher Meredith?
Fisher Meredith is an award winning London law firm with offices in Richmond, Surrey and Kennington, London. Our Education Law solicitors have an outstanding reputation for acting on behalf of individuals with highly successful results.
For 35 years, Fisher Meredith has developed a reputation for being approachable and “going the extra mile” for its clients whilst maintaining ethical and socially responsible standards.
Fisher Meredith’s Education Law Department specialises in disability discrimination cases and has strong connections with Independent Parental Special Education Advice (IPSEA), who can often provide free representation at tribunal hearings.
Our Education Law solicitors have successfully argued disability discrimination cases against education providers at SEND Tribunals based upon their unfavourable treatment towards pupils with disability.
Fisher Meredith is ranked as a Tier 3 firm in the Legal 500 for practising Education Law.
What should I do now?
If you are the parent of a disabled pupil at school, or you’re a disabled student in higher education and think you have been discriminated against by your education provider, you may be able to challenge this. Our Education Law Department can provide you with quality advice to achieve the best possible outcome.
For initial advice or to arrange a meeting with one of our solicitors, please contact our helpline on 0800 014 7445.
