THE grandmother of a disabled eight-year-old boy has accused a council of leaving her grandson behind after failing to secure him a place at a special school.

Brenda Tidmarsh, who cares for little Leon Johnson alongside her husband Michael, fears for the future of her grandson’s education.

Leon, who has had quadriplegic cerebral palsy since birth, attends Frinton Primary School.

But Mrs Tidmarsh says the school struggles to cater to Leon’s exceptional needs.

“They are struggling to manage him and would like him to go,” she said.

She said: “He is in a classroom with 31 children and it is difficult.

“We took him to Market Field School (in Elmstead Market) and they have between ten and 15 in each class and can cater to his needs - everywhere is accessible for him

“He badly wants to go there and tells me he doesn’t want to go to school at the moment.

“It has always felt like a constant fight to get everything Leon needs.” Leon was born prematurely and suffered from an infection at birth which left doctors certain he would die.

He miraculously pulled through and continues to defy expectations by completing regular sessions of physiotherapy.

Mrs Tidmarsh says Essex County Council has yet to give her an answer as to whether Leon will get a place at Market Field.

She adds Leon, who lives in Kirby, has been offered a place at a special school in Witham, about 30 miles away. She said: “I really lost my temper with them, it shouldn’t take a year to say whether he can go to school or not.

“My husband has his own disabilities, so if he wasn’t very well I would have to get to Witham to pick him up.

“I don’t think they’ve got a brain between them.

“We would have to get him up at 4am to get him ready, stretched and fed.

“He is autistic and has to have everything in a certain order.

“We have been told there are more than 100 children on the waiting list to go to Market Field.”

“He is too bright to go to Shorefields School, so where else can he go?”

An Essex County Council spokesman said: “We cannot comment on individual cases. Any concerns raised by parents are dealt with according to our established processes and we are in touch with the family directly.

“We are committed to ensuring every child receives a high quality education and work closely with families across the county to ensure children’s needs are met.”

A number of factors are taken into consideration when making a final decision about special school places, including whether individual schools can appropriately meet a child’s individual needs.”