Parents 'furious' after school unit closure

Parents with special needs children have said they are "furious" after their school's specialist unit was temporarily closed due to staff shortages.

Ten children have been affected by the closure of the SEMH (social, emotional and mental health) unit at Kennet Valley Primary School, in West Berkshire.

Joanna's son Harry lives with autism and ADHD and she said they were "concerned and worried" about his education and the "lack of communication" from the authorities.

West Berkshire Council has apologized and said they are "trying to resolve the situation".

Joanna said she was very concerned with the decision because "they are leaving some children out of education".

She said the school has been closed for nearly a week and there had been no communication and no alternative place to send him, so she had to temporarily stop work.

"We are worried about his education and I don't know when he will be able to return," she said.

"For a child, like Harry it is very important for him to have the same structure and routine - he needs that support in place otherwise it affects him.

"As a parent I'm very disappointed in how the council have dealt with the situation, they knew they had staffing issues last September."

Harry said: "When I'm stuck at home without school, its not fun, I just look out the window every day.

"I also don't feel like doing work at home because its my safe place."

Saffy said her son Kai was in the same situation and she felt "exhausted" and "emotional".

She said she had been trying to work with West Berkshire Council for three years, after Kai was permanently excluded from mainstream school.

"He was on the waiting list for Kennet Valley for quite some time, so it was a massive relief when he got a place and he enjoyed it there," she said.

"I had been fighting tooth and nail with the council to get him a place at the school, I lost my job as I'm a single parent and the situation now is very frustrating."

The executive director of children and family services at West Berkshire Council, Annmarie Dodds, said: "We're really sorry that we're in this position.

"The team are working to put in place alternative provision for all of those children affected as soon as possible."

She added: "Our expectation is that Kennett Valley will be reopened once the issues for staffing are resolved."