Beth has been advising parents of children with special educational needs since 1998 when she worked for a leading education law firm as well as volunteering for IPSEA. She moved to the Disability Rights Commission (DRC), where she was the Principal Education Lawyer responsible for several ground-breaking disability discrimination cases. Beth is a firm believer in equality, and this has inspired and influenced her career. Beth left the Disability Rights Commission to move to IPSEA to focus more on SEN work for children and young people. She ran their training and volunteering support as well as managing their disability discrimination in education project. Beth also worked for one of the largest claimant education law firms before moving out of formal legal practice to set up Education Law Experts with Sarah, who she has worked with since 2010.
Beth is a Trust Director for Seashell Trust which is a charity based in Manchester providing education and residential care for children and young people complex needs across the UK.
When Beth is not working, she and her husband are kept busy by their teenage children and labrador. She has recently reignited her love of sailing and skiing but is at her happiest walking by the sea, particularly on the Northumberland coast.
Sarah studied Law at the University of Durham and subsequently trained and qualified as a solicitor at a leading boutique education law firm (later acquired by Simpson Millar). Sarah later spent several years working as part of Irwin Mitchell’s Public Law team, heading up their Newcastle team, before returning to Simpson Millar where she most recently worked as national Head of their Education and Children’s Rights department.
Sarah is most passionate about ensuring children receive the quality education they deserve. She achieves great results for her clients and her work has been consistently recognised in legal directories.
In addition to her paid work, Sarah works with several charities across the country providing support for those with disabilities and special needs. She was a trustee of Northeast Special Needs Network which merged with Skills for People in 2017. Until very recently, she remained on the Board of Skills for People which provide much needed support to those with disabilities throughout the Northeast. She is also a SEND Governor at her local primary school.
When Sarah is not working, she is generally found facilitating the various social activities of her young daughters. Sarah’s family are what is most important to her and it is her lived experiences of the education system which allow her to use her legal skills and knowledge in a way which is effective, practical and empathetic.
Emily gained her degree at Cardiff university and went on to work in a support role to young people and adults with a range of additional needs including autism. From there, she developed a passion to ensure that those with special educational needs are given the right start in life and she joined Education Advocacy based in Wiltshire.
Emily supported parents of children with SEN through disputes around Education, Health and Care plans (EHCPs) for over a decade before continuing this work for Education Law Experts. She works closely with families to provide practical, clear and effective legal advice to families. Emily is conscientious and compassionate in her work. Her clients comment that she is “calm, helpful and knowledgeable.”
Emily has an impressive success rate with SEN appeals and has a proven track record of negotiating successful outcomes without the need to attend hearings. She is an expert in all types of appeals to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal including:
Emily has been noted to have an ‘encyclopaedic knowledge of schools, particularly in the South.’ She has developed a close working relationship with a number of special schools and is often able to apply her knowledge in assisting families still searching for suitable schools for their children.
In her free time, Emily enjoys reading, hiking in the Cotswolds and cycling in addition to spending time with her family.