Sacpa webinar: Understanding ‘reasonable adjustment’ and ‘defensible decisions’

• Date: May 26, 2022
• Time: 09:30 – 10:30
• Cost: Sacpa Member – £60, Additional Sacpa Member £15, Non-member – £120
• Audience: All practitioners working with children, young people or vulnerable individuals, DSL/DSO, DDSL, Safeguarding Manager/Lead, Governors, Trustees.
• Platform: Zoom (online)

The emphasis on the need for awareness of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in safeguarding guidance continues to grow. It is critical to avoid unlawful discrimination and to discharge the duty to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 as well as understand evolving government guidance on best practice in supporting children with SEND. Does your organisation understand its legal duties and its approach to making adjustments for the individual needs of its service users and staff?

This webinar will highlight the legal landscape relating to disability discrimination and in particular the duty to make reasonable adjustments.

Training topics will include:

• Signposting key equality legislation and safeguarding guidance
• What constitutes a ‘disability’?
• What adjustments may be ‘reasonable’?

Learning outcomes:

• Awareness and understanding of key equality duties
• Awareness and understanding of key safeguarding guidance
• Ability to consider what adjustments may be ‘reasonable’.

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Speakers: Ben Collingwood, Partner, Moore Barlow

Ben specialises in advising independent schools and other charities on wide ranging areas of education law, with particular focus on reputation issues, pastoral, safeguarding, historic abuse allegations, SEN, exclusions, parent/pupil complaints, data protection, parent contracts, admissions and staff matters of all types.

He has written and spoken widely on these issues, providing comment in The Times, The Guardian, The Lawyer and Law Society’s Gazette and at the national conferences and training programmes for the various associations that support independent schools and charities.

Ben lives with his wife and three children in West Sussex where he serves as a trustee of his local parochial church council. He is a devoted surfer and spends as much of his free time as possible in the sea and walking with his family and their two pointers.

Adam McRae-Taylor, Senior Associate, Moore Barlow

Adam specialises in advising charities and independent schools in wide ranging aspects of employment, safeguarding and education law.

Adam’s approach is to work with schools and charities to ensure that they are managing their staff and children fairly, lawfully and safely. This not only helps an organisation thrive and grow, but also prevents managers from being distracted by disputes. Where contentious issues do arise, he is experienced in employment tribunal litigation and he regularly advises on employment claims such as unfair dismissal, whistleblowing and discrimination.

He trained and qualified in employment law with a Magic Circle firm in London. Before joining the Schools & Charities Team at Moore Barlow LLP (formerly Barlow Robbins LLP), Adam spent two years working in-house for a charity which gave him an invaluable perspective on how to provide practical advice on the issues charities commonly face.