LIKE all loving parents, the only thing they ever wanted was a bright and happy future for their child. George and Liz McCulloch risked everything they had and took on the bureaucrats in a bitter and costly legal battle. Now, after a two-year struggle, they have won their case and proved that they, and not the state, know what is best for their disabled daughter.
Determined to get justice, the couple gambled their financial future and successfully sued Argyll and Bute Council to secure their child a place at Edinburgh's Royal Blind School.
For months, the local authority fought the McCullochs, insisting their visually impaired daughter was able to cope at a mainstream school. The parents strongly disagreed and were forced to take legal action.
What ensued were two years of emotional and financial turmoil that almost destroyed the family.
The couple claim the council used "underhand tactics", threatening them with a child-protection order and hinting that their daughter could be taken into care if they refused to drop the court action.
Unable to sleep at night and facing the unbearable thought she might lose her daughter, Mrs McCulloch, from Helensburgh, turned reluctantly to her 83-year-old mother for help.
Adamant the council would not win, her mother offered up her life savings – £50,000 – to help fight the case and secure her granddaughter's future.
An ordinary middle-class family took on the might of the local council and won. But as Mrs McCulloch said, it has come at a cost. "We have been through hell. I couldn't sleep at night…I was terrified of them taking her," she said.
"As a family, we were absolutely devastated. Even though we won the court case, we will never recover from what they put us through. The tactics used by the council were terrible, to stop us from taking it to court."
Mrs McCulloch was accused of "disabling" her daughter and exaggerating the extent of her condition. But what the family did not know was that the council had begun a round of secret meetings in December 2006 in which she was being accused of child abuse.
It raised the terrifying prospect of a child-protection case – the first stages of their daughter being taken into care.
"We have never harmed our daughter. To accuse a mother of emotional abuse is horrendous. It's the worst thing anyone could say," she said.
"The whole thing took its toll on all of us. We're a normal, loving family and yet here we were caught up in this legal mess, when all we wanted was the best for our daughter."
The 15-year-old, who chose not to be named, has a cerebral visual impairment that restricts her peripheral vision and means she struggles to see colours and 3D. She suffers from a rare brain injury, which was not diagnosed until she was 11.
She started at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh in 2005, but her parents became increasingly concerned she was not getting an educational package tailored to her needs.
Worried for her safety after two serious accidents at the school in which she fell down a flight of stairs, they realised she needed specialist help.
Keen to get the very best for their child, they visited the Royal Blind School – Scotland's only specialist centre for visually impaired children. While the council still insisted she should remain at a mainstream school, experts at the centre of excellence in Edinburgh offered her the rare chance to take up a residential place. The council refused funding and questioned the extent of the girl's disability, insisting she remain at Hermitage Academy.
Mrs McCulloch, 48, estimates the council wasted £50,000 of taxpayers' money on the legal battle, when it would have cost £40,000 a year to send her daughter to the Royal Blind School. She believes the issue comes down to money and is furious the local authority was prepared to question the opinion of experts at the world-renowned centre.
"We discovered social services had been having secret meetings. They were accusing us of abuse and saying our daughter was at risk. This was all a smokescreen, they just didn't want to pay for the place.
"We were informed that if we didn't drop the court case, the child protection would continue with the possibility of it going to children's reporter.
"The way they treated our daughter was disgusting. They never had her interests at heart."
A letter the couple obtained through the Freedom of Information Act details the minutes of the child-protection case discussion, involving Argyll and Bute Council, in which officials accuse the family of "emotional abuse".
It states: "The girl's disability as seen by her parents is different from professional opinion and she may be replicating her parents' attitude to, or perception of, her disability.
"He suggested that, based on the information shared at the meeting, he would be recommending the case went to a Child Protection Case Conference, based on the category of Emotional Abuse."
The family faced a harrowing round of costly hearings, spending thousands of pounds on independent assessments which were used in court to support their case, proving their child did have significant learning difficulties.
The psychological stresses took their toll, and at one stage the McCullochs considered abandoning the case as the financial reality started to bite. Every waking minute was spent on the court case and family life started to suffer.
Mr McCulloch, an operations manager, was refused legal aid to fight the case, launched in August 2007. As it dragged on, month after month, he slowly realised he could be on the wrong end of a £100,000 bill.
Without the financial help of relatives, he knew he could lose the family home. He said: "We took a loan out of £50,000 from relatives. We started thinking about stopping the legal action because we were so worried.
"They have abused their power by bringing in child protection to threaten and intimidate us. These people have to be called to account. They can't be left to bully and intimidate parents."
In August, the family won the case, held in private at Dumbarton Sheriff Court. They were awarded costs of about £50,000 – but will still be out of pocket because of the expensive private assessments needed as part of the legal action. Their daughter now has a residential place at the Royal Blind School and enjoys specialist speech and language therapy, returning home at weekends.
The case brings into sharp focus the issue of how best to educate children with special needs. While parents naturally want the best for their children, specialist facilities do not come cheap, and education authorities can find themselves facing a bill in excess of £100,000 for each child educated outwith mainstream schools.
This is the latest in a series of court cases in which ordinary working families have challenged local authorities over the provision of education for special needs children.
The McCullochs are not alone in taking on their local council, and figures suggest families in Scotland are having to pay up to £25,000 a year for specialist programmes because many local authorities refuse to finance them.
The case could set an important precedent for other parents whose children are disabled and require specialist education.
The long fight for justice1 - Daughter started Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh in 2004
2 - Went for an assessment at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh in December 2005. Experts at the centre of excellence believe she is worthy of a place and fits all the criteria.
Apply to the council for a placing request in January 2006 and are devastated when it is refused and the council insist she should remain in a mainstream school.
3 - The family realises Argyll and Bute Council are holding "secret" meetings regarding child protection issues in December 2006. The family are accused of emotional abuse and they fear their daughter could be taken into care.
4 - Freedom of Information letter accusing parents of emotional abuse.
5 - Family go through internal tribunal with the council and lose an appeal in November 2006. Decided to take legal action immediately but are refused legal aid, forcing them to fund the case themselves.
6 - Case must have cost taxpayers £50,000.
7 - Won the case in private at Dumbarton Sheriff court in May 2008. More legal argument about costs, in August 2008 awarded about £50,000.
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