Following the recent damning SEND Ofsted Report 2024, we are calling for Councillor Fiona Baker to step down as West Northants Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Education. Thousands of vulnerable children and young people are being directly impacted by the chronic and systemic failings of West Northants Council (WNC) and parents have had enough. 

We are asking everyone to SIGN THE PETITION TODAY.

Since taking office as the member responsible for children in the area, initially under Northamptonshire County Council in January 2019 which later went bust, Cllr Baker has overseen repeated failures to meet the needs of vulnerable children in her care.

The opening of the Hunsbury Park unit was delayed, leaving children without their promised school place for last September, which WNC tried to cover up and failed to speak honestly about with parents. In addition, a further 250 SEN places have been delayed for at least a year at the new £23m Tiffield School, leaving many children in inappropriate provision for longer.

In March, a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGO) report led to the council forking out a total of £48,600 in compensation to nine SEN families for failing to meet their educational needs. This included £7,125 to one family after a child with autism who did not get a proper education for nearly two years and was left with “significant physical and mental distress” after being left isolated in a separate room in a mainstream primary school. There have been many other LGO decisions that make similarly distressing reading.

Under Cllr Baker, WNC spent a total of £274,935 on legal fees in a single year on fighting SEN families getting the education their children needed through tribunals. Despite this financial cost, the council was only successful in 3% of cases. Parents described being “bullied and patronised” during mediation meetings with some being met by threats, such as a call from social services if she did not accept the council’s decision.

Only 6% of EHCPs are being completed within the legal time scales and WNC claim they are improving this but the focus appears to be on recent cases, which will improve how their stats look, while many other who have been waiting much longer are still waiting.

The LA is toxic; families are treated appallingly and parents are relentlessly blamed. To read the Ofsted report click here       

Enough is enough. It's time for her to go! #byebyebaker