Exchange Chambers praised for life-changing impact of its award-winning Pro Bono initiative
August 20, 2024
Barristers at Exchange Chambers should be proud of the positive, life-changing impact of their pioneering partnership with the National Autistic Society, says the KC responsible for the set’s longest-running pro bono initiative.
Since 2009, a team of over 30 barristers from Exchange Chambers have worked with the National Autistic Society’s Education Tribunal Support Helpline to provide free representation for parents wishing to challenge decisions made by their local authority at the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal (SENDIST).
The scheme was established and championed by David Knifton KC, who has 4 children, 3 of whom are autistic. David has been working with the National Autistic Society on a pro bono basis for almost 20 years.
“My personal experience of the struggle faced in securing a place for one of my sons at a special school with autism expertise and speech and language therapy support led me to volunteer in 2005 as an advocate on the Tribunal Support Scheme operated by the National Autistic Society,” explained David.
“The scheme provided advice by telephone and e-mail to parents of autistic children appealing to the Tribunal. Many such parents, already exhausted by the demands of caring for a child with a lifelong disability, gave harrowing accounts of the countless barriers they faced in trying to access the educational provision so crucial to their child’s development. My discussions with them gave me a greater insight into the needs of families with an autistic child, and the considerable strains placed upon parents raising a child with a profound disability. Aware, not least from my personal experience at a Tribunal appeal, that even the most articulate parents sometimes found the prospect of representing themselves at such hearings too daunting, but that the National Autistic Society scheme was unable to provide representation, I instigated a pro bono partnership between the National Autistic Society and Exchange Chambers.”
Over the years, countless families have benefited from the representation provided pro bono by members of Exchange Chambers. One parent described such support as “life-changing”.
By way of example, Luke S is autistic and had been educated in a mainstream primary school. The local authority proposed a generic special secondary school but Luke’s mum objected that he would only fulfil his potential at a specialist independent school for autistic children. Recognising the limited expert evidence to support that argument, counsel from Exchange Chambers persuaded the Tribunal to order jointly-commissioned independent therapists’ reports. At a resumed hearing, the Tribunal accepted that only the independent school could meet Luke’s needs.
Davy S needed extra help at school. His parents sought a residential placement in a school which provided a holistic expert communication approach to learning within a waking hours curriculum. They also wanted him to board on alternate weekends, to promote the generalisation of his new skills into everyday contexts. The Local Authority opposed the placement, suggesting that Davy’s needs could be met in a local special school. Instructed only 2 weeks prior to the hearing, counsel from Exchange Chambers advised the parents on re-drafting the Statement of Special Educational Needs, so as to incorporate their wishes and highlight the reports of the independent experts. The changes persuaded the Local Authority to agree, just 2 days prior to the hearing, to fund the parents’ chosen placement, where Davy will be supported by specialist teachers and therapists, alongside children with similar support needs.
The success of the Exchange Chambers Pro Bono initiative in transforming the lives of families going through the appeals process was recognised in an award for Outstanding Family Support at the 2016 Autism Professionals Awards, at which the judges expressed their admiration for the generous work undertaken free of charge by skilled advocates.
This project has now come to an end and, as part of its new Vision to Reality Strategy, the National Autistic Society is currently in the process of transforming the advice and support it offers to autistic people and their families, with the aim of ensuring they can reach more people and offer guidance about a greater range of subjects than ever before.
Andy Cutting, Specialist Lead (Autism Help) at the National Autistic Society, said:
“On behalf of all those families whom Exchange Chambers have helped over the years, I would like to say thank you. In many cases, the dedicated, expert and determined work of the Exchange Chambers barristers has changed the trajectory of the lives of autistic children. Their involvement has meant that the downward spiral in many autistic children’s education has been prevented. Instead, they’ve made it possible for children to flourish in settings where their needs are both understood and met. I am sure that there will be further opportunities in the future for the National Autistic Society and Exchange Chambers to collaborate, to help create a society that works for autistic people.”
Added David Knifton KC:
“Whilst it is a great pity that our longstanding pro bono alliance has had to end, I am enormously proud of the time, dedication and skill which members of Chambers have provided in support of families of autistic children.”
Concluded Jonathan I’Anson, Chief Executive at Exchange Chambers:
“We couldn’t be prouder of our pro bono work with the National Autistic Society. I would like to thank every member of Chambers who has provided their support over the last 15 years.”
