Working together to improve access to education for children and families

Access to Education Rights is a network facilitated by Southwark Law Centre bringing together community organisations, advice services and people working in education across Southwark and surrounding areas.

The group provides a space to share knowledge, identify recurring problems affecting children and families, and explore how legal rights can be used to address them.

Issues discussed by the group include SEND, school exclusions, children living in temporary accommodation, difficulties securing suitable education and other barriers that prevent children from accessing their right to education.

What the group does

Many organisations supporting children and families encounter education problems but do not have access to specialist education law expertise.

Access to Education Rights helps bridge that gap.

Through the group, Southwark Law Centre aims to:

  • increase members’ knowledge and confidence in identifying education law issues;
  • provide training on relevant areas of education law and children’s rights;
  • provide access, where possible, to specialist second-tier legal advice on complex cases;
  • create a space for organisations to share emerging issues and experiences;
  • identify recurring or systemic problems affecting local children and families; and
  • explore opportunities for organisations to work together to address those problems.

Join the Network

The group meets quarterly and is open to community groups, charities, advice organisations, education professionals and others working with children and families in Southwark and surrounding areas.

There is no cost to join.

By joining the network, you can hear about upcoming meetings and training, access opportunities for specialist legal support and contribute to discussions about the education issues affecting the communities you work with.

Join Access to Education Rights

Upcoming Meetings and Events

We run quarterly network meetings as well as occasional training and events on education rights.

Sign up to the network to receive details of future meetings, training and events.

Education Rights Events Coming Up

Second-Tier Legal Advice and Casework

Southwark Law Centre can provide second-tier education law advice to organisations and professionals through the Access to Education Rights project, as well as taking on some cases referred by professionals, subject to capacity.

This means that if you are supporting a child or family and need specialist legal input on an education issue, you may be able to discuss the case with our team and receive advice on the relevant law, rights and possible next steps.

Find out about second-tier education advice

Working Together for Wider Change

The experiences of organisations working directly with children and families can also help identify where the same problems are happening repeatedly.

By bringing organisations together and combining community knowledge with legal expertise, Access to Education Rights aims to do more than resolve individual problems. We want to build knowledge across the sector, identify barriers affecting local families and, where possible, work collectively to improve access to education.