Send Family Magic

11/05/2026

Some of you might be interested in this, and Koala are great, so check them out.

Peer support, training and education by autistic people, for autistic people

11/05/2026

Hi All..

I have not been great at fundraising for this, because of everything else going on.. the organisation know my situation and are being great about it..

They said they just hope I enjoy the training and the half marathon on the day..

But there are 2 weeks to go and I thought I would try to pump it up a bit..

So if anyone can donate even a small amount, this is the organisation I have used in the past to support my kids during court ordered contact arrangements post Domestic Abuse.. and they were amazing.

They also do so much for the local community in Exmouth where I live... so I would love to add a bit to my total.

Thank you in advance..

Help Jessica Cain raise money to support Open Door Exmouth

11/05/2026

This REFORM is not about getting kids in school...

It is about getting parents into work!

I have been thinking a lot about why the GOV.UK seemed happy in the past when SEND kids were being illegally off-rolled, and ending up having to be UN-electively home educated..

They loved it... encouraged it..

Until they realised, it might save SEND funding in schools, but it cost them in Universal Credit and decreased the taxes they could claim as so many parents had to leave work...

So NOW.. the GOV.UK seemed pervasively driven to get all the children:

Getting EOTAS - education otherwise than at school
Being Electively Home Educated
Receiving Alternative Provision
And those Kids with no education..

BACK into mainstream..

AP used to look like a few hours a day online, or 2hrs a week with a tutor or similar.. meaning parents had to care for kids the rest of the day...

Now, the Inclusion hubs aim to get kids back into schools, all day..

Leaving parents free to work..

National attendance datasets indicate over 1.5 million pupils were persistently absent at points during the 2024/25 period, with severe absence affecting a smaller but still very significant cohort.

SEND pupils are consistently overrepresented in these figures.

AND SEND pupils often also get DLA... (Disability Living Allowance.. and their parents may also get PIP)..

If we consider the Office for National Stats states approx 25% of households with children are lone parent families..

Therefore for that 25% at least, if they cannot work as supporting their child who is unable to attend, the family WILL have to be supported by Universal Credit..

If you are getting Universal Credit, and your child gets DLA or you get PIP, you do not suffer the horrific benefit cap..

Here are some realistic but example figures to show how serious the cap is for a lone parent family with 3 kids...

Family 1 with DLA so no cap = £2800 a month (rent £1300)
Family 1 without DLA and working £2000 plus £1800 wages (pre tax) (rent £1300)

Family 1 without DLA and unable to work due to barriers to attendance -£1600 (rent £1300)

They are creating Inclusion hubs, removing legal rights, so they can remove DLA and PIP families from being excluded from the benefit cap, meaning parents face working as their only option over being homeless..

This is MUCH bigger than education..
This is about PIP, DLA, Access to work..

This is the Gov turning the tides, not happy with the benefits system..

This is just the beggining.
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11/05/2026

11/05/2026

If you are supporting a child through Exam induced anxiety and overwhelm at the moment.
I send you strength..

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

We are in that mode too, with 3 of my kids entering exam season, the additional impacts add even more to families like ours, managing far more than most already.

Having older siblings who didn’t take SATs due to covid and then who both went on to college etc, without having GCSEs helps my younger kids to know exams are not everything..

But still the pressure is huge for those taking SATs, GCSEs and Mocks.

The truth also is, that even though my kids have additional accommodations, even those set them apart from others at this time and cause shame.

I don’t have any big solutions or great advice.

All I have today is love for parents and children, going through this.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

09/05/2026

Claire Pitt and O, special thank you to you both for creating a safe and welcoming space for me and the kids..

The bacon sarny was a dream.

❤️❤️❤️❤️

09/05/2026

Thank you for organising today..

So amazing to be around so many who share the passion to fight for our children’s rights..

09/05/2026

Thank you for all the hard work that went into today..