Diabetic girl, 5, refused school place, says mum

A five-year-old girl was denied a school place because of her type 1 diabetes, her mother has said.

Maisie had been attending school until her family moved to Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, in October.

In a letter seen by the BBC, Ruskin Infant School said it could not meet Maisie's needs.

The school declined to comment but North Northamptonshire Council said a place for Maisie had now been confirmed.

In the letter, the school said Maisie had "significant needs" and that it did not have the resources to meet them, raising safety concerns.

The school said it understood Maisie had previously had one-to-one care from a staff member who could monitor her insulin levels and help with her needs.

It said it could not offer this without an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) in place and further funding to train staff.

However, Maisie's mother Lauren said her daughter had not had any one-to-one supervision since attending nursery school, aged two.

A letter from North Northamptonshire Council confirmed it did not believe Maisie met the criteria for an EHCP.

Lauren, 31, told the BBC it was difficult to watch her child struggle and worry she had done something wrong.

"Maisie is crying mainly every day, asking to go to school, asking 'Why won't the school accept me? What have I done wrong, why do I have to be diabetic?'" she said.

"It's affecting her but hearing that from your child as well, it affects us.

"Why should she have to feel this way? She's done nothing wrong. She's been denied an education; it's a basic human right."

Maisie said: "I feel like I'm left out because everyone else has got friends except for me."

She said she missed maths lessons, writing and drawing pictures.

Lauren has tried to educate Maisie at home but worries her development has been affected.

"She's fallen behind massively, to the point her speech is at a younger age," she said. "She can't put sentences together; some words she can't pronounce.

"She can count, maybe, one to 10 where another child her age could count to 25."

Maisie is monitored by a pump that raises an alarm when her blood sugar is not within a normal range.

Lauren said the machine did most of the work to correct any blood sugar issues and that Maisie knew what else to do, so any staff intervention at school would be minimal.

She said: "I feel angry, upset and frustrated because this has never happened to us. All the other schools have accepted her, all the teachers have accepted the training... I can't really believe that's happened."

The Independent Provider of Special Educational Advice charity said schools had "a duty to support pupils with medical conditions".

In a statement, it said: "This is a legal duty under Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

"All medical conditions must be supported, whether they are physical or mental health needs."

Shortly after it was contacted by the BBC, North Northamptonshire Council said a place had been confirmed for Maisie in school and she is due to start on 16 January.

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