Thank you to everyone who has signed, shared, and supported this petition so far. The momentum is growing.

This evening, Derbyshire Live published an article covering our campaign and exposing Derby City Council's systemic use of the internal 'Delivering Better Value' (DBV) funding matrix to cap EHCP provision.

You can read the full article here:

https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/derby-news/worried-dad-fears-derby-children-10843803

In the article, the council's press office attempts to defend the matrix by stating it is used to "identify children's needs." It is vital that every SEND parent in Derby stands together on why this statement is legally and factually incorrect.

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, a child’s needs are identified by clinical experts - such as Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists, and Medical Consultants - during the statutory assessment process. These experts write detailed reports specifying exactly what provision a child requires to access education.

A financial spreadsheet does not identify a child's needs. What this matrix actually does is define a strict financial ceiling (often capped at around £8,000 from the school's existing budget, so effectively £0 extra help) that a child's EHCP must be artificially written to fit into, regardless of what the clinical experts have recommended. It is a tool designed to override specialist advice to save the council money. The law is clear: Local Authorities must quantify provision to meet a child's assessed needs. They cannot unlawfully trim a child's needs to fit a budget matrix.

Our legal deadline for the council to respond to our Pre-Action Protocol (PAP) regarding this unlawful practice expires this Thursday at 5:00 PM. We will not be backing down. Please continue to share this petition in your local parent groups. The more transparency we bring to this matrix, the harder it becomes for the council to hide behind it.

Thank you for standing with us.

Samuel Melrose