Deaf News: Brothers fight to save ‘special bond’ after being placed in separate schools

Two deaf brothers from Kingston, in London, are campaigning to be reunited in the same school, after tribunals ruled against the siblings studying together.

Bailey, 13, has been placed in Oak Lodge School in south London, while his younger brother Romeo, 10, studies at Mary Hare Primary School in Berkshire.

“[Bailey] has plenty of evidence [as to] why he shouldn’t be at Oak Lodge. There has been no consideration of his peer group, progress made [or] academic attainments.

“Because of this, he has lost his motivation and just isn’t thriving at school. I have had to refer him to [Deaf Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services] last year because he was, and still is, very angry when he came home from school,” Bailey’s mother, Viccy Paull-Martin, tells The Limping Chicken.

Two tribunals have taken place to move Bailey to Mary Hare with Romeo. One hearing took place in September 2019, and another in April this year – both were unsuccessful.

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According to Mrs Paull-Martin, the April ruling was that Oak Lodge meets the 13-year-old’s needs as they use British Sign Language (BSL), while Mary Hare is an oral school, operating in an environment which she says Oak Lodge claimed Bailey could not cope with.

The mother of three, who is also deaf, continues: “When Bailey found out that he’d lost his court appeal, he lost his temper and was very upset. He has said that he doesn’t want to go back to Oak Lodge anymore. He hates the school so much.

“He tried to go back to school on 27th April 2021 […] He felt sick with a tummy ache and headache and does not want to go back to school again and so, at the moment, he is having private tutoring for a while with me.”

While Bailey achieved little success in the courts, Romeo won a tribunal in May 2020, to have him transferred from Guildford Grove Primary School to Mary Hare. He is “very happy” and has “settled in well”, Mrs Paull-Martin goes on to add.

“Unfortunately, the bond between them has started to fade away and their relationship is not like they used to have,” she continues. “Bailey used to be protective and play nicely with him.”

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Explaining that Romeo was “in tears” following the second court ruling, Mrs Paull-Martin says: “It is very important for them to be in the same school as they both grew up together in Guildford Grove. They have their special bond together and naturally, as siblings, always protect each other.

“It also makes practical sense for them both to go to the same school so they can travel together.

“Kingston Council want to save their money. They say they know what the child needs [but they are] not being supportive at all to our Deaf needs,” she concludes.

Since our conversation, Mrs Paull-Martin has claimed on Twitter that she might not be able to appeal against the current situation until next year.

The Limping Chicken approached Kingston Council and Oak Lodge for a statement, but they did not respond to our requests for comment.

Peter Gayle, principal and CEO at Mary Hare, told us in an email: “Whenever a young person meets our entrance criteria we work to support the family in securing placement with us. However, some families have to go to Tribunal and the panel may take a different view.

“We continue to support the family behind the scenes.”

Photo: Viccy Paull-Martin.

By Liam O’Dell. Liam is a mildly deaf freelance journalist and campaigner from Bedfordshire. He wears bilateral hearing aids and can be found talking about disability, theatre, politics and more on Twitter and on his website.