SEN4You Reviews 84

Other reviews provide a comprehensive description of Mark's SEN expertise and success so speaking highly about him will be just another average positive review. Saying " Mark, THANK YOU for everything that you did for us" would not be good enough either. If there is a way to describe the next level of excellence, it would be "Mark Small". By reading this review (and others) you are probably thinking what's all the hype about him or even what makes him so different to any other SEN lawyer!? The key difference here is that every other SEN lawyer will treat your case as a business only, regardless of the outcome. But not Mark. Mark really does care about you and your child and he will passionately fight your case until the very best outcome is achieved. His SEN expertise, hard work and personal care make Mark the ultimate “killer” package against your LA. Therefore, if your child has a SEN and you are considering a fight with your LA you must have Mark Small on your side.
J.R.R. Tolkien once said, " There is some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for". Mark, Thank You for being part of it.

There's no way of getting around it, the tribunal is a stressful and emotional experience. If you want to get the help your child needs, you will definitely need legal representation. Since you only get one chance to make your case, you need to make sure you get the best in the business. If you are reading this review, it is because you are asking yourself if Mark Small is that person. For once, you really can believe all the excellent reviews. Mark is outstanding. He has the expert knowledge and contacts to get you the evidence you need to build a strong case. Then you can just watch as he calmly and meticulously destroys the Local Authority's arguments, leaving them gibbering wrecks. After years of being failed in a mainstream primary school, finally our daughter is getting the education she deserves at a specialist school. This is all thanks to Mark. Simply put, he is a winner.

We cannot stress how impressive Mr Small has been. He is knowledgeable not just in the points of SEN law but also deeply experienced in the “thinking” and “likely moves” of both LAs and Tribunal panels. This makes him not only an excellent lawyer but a great strategist.

He will give you an honest, balanced and realistic appraisal of your case. He speaks frankly and to the point - you really get the impression that every minute spent with him discussing one’s case is time-efficient. One feels confident after speaking with him.

We switched to Mr Small’s firm after spending thousands of pounds on a “well respected” SEN lawyer who - frankly - simply led us up the garden path.

Switching to Mr Small was the best decision we could have made for our son.

I cannot recommend him highly enough.

We were so glad that we chose Baker Small. With the help of Mark and his team, we finally secured the school placement our son needed through a second tribunal and at the same time righting the huge legal difficulties that our LA had imposed on us, bringing closure to a traumatic journey of 2 years and already one unsuccessful tribunal.
Working closely with parents, Mark rapidly built up trust and a good rapport. Mark’s ability to absorb vast amount of detail in so many documents and quickly analyse was stunning. Very early on in the engagement, Mark focused on the key relevant factors needed for success and conclude on best next steps.
Communication was consistently good which was, for us, most important. Regardless of time of day, sometimes well into the evenings, Mark was easy to talk with yet he was always progressive and professional. The office team too were a significant asset - very knowledgeable in the case status and supported us well when Mark was not immediately available.
Mark‘s legal knowledge in SEN matters is profound and he has significant experience in Case Law creation. When it came to Tribunal, he arrived well prepared for the case and with calm professional guidance, he expertly navigated through the day’s proceeding. To witness Mark in action was an education itself.
Expert intervention is never free, yet Baker Small costs were reasonable and the flexible payment schedule helped cushion our finances.
One final comment: Mark never promised outcome, but he committed his unwavering professional and personal best throughout.

My husband and I are eternally grateful to Mark and his team in helping us to win full-time Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) support as well as more intensive speech and language/occupational therapy support in school for our son.

We contacted and spoke to several well-regarded SEN law firms, and did not feel confident they could win the support we felt necessary for our son, but Mark’s experience and knowledge in the SEN field is unparalleled and we would recommend him without hesitation to other parents in a similar position to us.

The case went to Tribunal but fortunately for us, with Mark on our side, the arguments were very one-sided and we won all the support requested, which was a relief.

Mark’s fees are also very reasonable compared to other SEN solicitors.

Hopefully, we will not need to use Mark’s services again for some time now, but if we do need help in the future, he would definitely be our number one choice!

Mark and the Team helped us get our 14 year old son into a specialist Autistic School. There is no way that we would have had the knowledge or energy to follow this process through to a tribunal on our own. At every step of the way the local authority blocked progress and it seemed that we were due to go to a tribunal. Due to Mark's fantastic hard work and perseverance, the County gave in and our child was finally allowed to go to a place where he is now excelling and enjoying school. It is a delight (and a new experience) to hear our son actually say that he is looking forward to school and can't wait to go the next day.
Previously, he was on a part time time table, only going in to school two days a week for one and half hours at a time. The transformation on his well-being and future outcomes in life is incredible. As a result, our time spent as a family is now so much better as our son is finally happy.
I would definitely recommend Mark's services as he gave me the confidence to challenge and not give up despite being told other information from the County.

If you are serious about legal representation for any SEN related issue in the UK, in my opinion, there is only one best choice - Mark Small at Sen4You.

I personally have seen the pre-eminence of Mark and total ownership of our case against the Local Authority, to such an extent that he was working at weekends/late evenings, consistently hyper-responsive to queries and extremely helpful in explaining complex legal matters. His brilliance in the court room is very well known, but what you will also experience is his unrivalled knowledge of the SEN process all the way from the acceptance of the requirement to perform an EHCP assessment through to representing you at Tribunal. Not everyone will need to go to Tribunal, and I have seen other Parents just use Mark for a small amount of time in writing letters or representing them in meetings. When Mark is involved Parents tend to be listened to by the LA in securing the support to which their child is entitled to.

What I was not expecting from any solicitor was the degree to which Mark acted as our true champion and took such personal ownership of helping our little boy get the support which he so obviously needed and deserved. From our first meeting, Mark was able to distil the critical points into easy-to-understand concepts which allowed us to fully believe him when he said "I'll get you the support your child needs". Despite hearing from quite a few other Parents about his performance in the court-room, no-one could have prepared us for how professional, intelligent, articulate and generally just "really good at his job" Mark was on the date of the Tribunal. His preparation for the case was amazing; he knew the EHCP process "inside-out" but also he knew more about my boy than anyone else in the room (apart from us Parents obviously), and I believe that he was seen as highly credible by all parties.

Mark has changed my little boy's chances of leading a happy and productive life. I've personally seen a large volume of recent experience from local parents - we all regard him as an absolute hero. If I could give 6 stars I would, and I could not recommend him more highly!

Absolutely outstanding legal support and advice from Baker Small Solicitors.

After receiving a ‘no-change’ letter from our LA for our ASD Son we felt forced to appeal to the SEND Tribunal because we believed that the LA had left our Son in a setting which was unsuitable and without any adequate therapy provision. We were initially keen to negotiate with the LA but our reasoning fell on deaf ears and after a month they still hadn’t agreed a date to meet us. Therefore, we obtained a mediation certificate and instructed Mark from Baker Small Solicitors, it was without doubt the best decision we’ve made.

Within 2 weeks of Mark taking on our case our Son was allocated a place at our preferred specialist setting that we had been told had ‘no places’, this was followed by support and professional therapy being added (specified and quantified) to his EHC Plan. Right from our initial conversations with Mark we became aware that what we had been told by the LA and school wasn’t lawful and we shouldn’t have been refused a specialist setting in the first place. Mark was extremely positive and provided us with hope, which at the time was difficult to believe due to us having had a hugely negative experience with the LA and school for the past 3 years. However, every outcome Mark predicted from the outset came true.

Professional, personable and extremely knowledgeable, Mark was amazing, even to the point of discussing our case options in the evenings, convenient to when both of us (parents) were available. We felt helpless that our Son was suffering in school and we felt that we had nowhere to turn. Our Son is now thriving in his new setting and it has only been made possible due to Baker Small Solicitors, we cannot thank them enough and will certainly be recommending them to anyone requiring SEND advice in the future.

We were reaching the junction between primary and secondary school and having faced years of promises leading to dead ends we spoke to a friend who recommended Mark. From the very first conversation Mark put the fight back in me. He reassured me that we would get the outcome we needed and we did. We were seeking an ECHP assessment and had been unlawfully refused. We were hurtling towards the secondary school application deadline and felt out of control and helpless. The LA were delaying and throwing everything at us to prevent our case progressing but Mark ploughed through and the LA conceded. It's a great outcome but it's also the right outcome and the legally sound outcome. Mark's advice was solid and correct the whole way.

If you are reading through reviews on solicitors looking for the best help available for your SEN child, we were in exactly the same boat three months ago! Our son is now in the school of our choice, an independent school out of our county. The same school that his original School head and Senco said we’d have no chance of getting. Our son was drowning in main stream and we knew we had no choice but to battle for the provision he needed. Mark was absolutely brilliant, he knows the law inside out and fills you with every confidence. He was 100% correct in his original evaluation of our case, as a result Mark correctly predicted the end result. We didn’t get as far as the Tribunal, our LA conceded on all counts and we got our son the school/education and support he so desperately needed. We were worried about the legal costs but we had a pre-agreed fixed price, due to the fact we didn’t go to tribunal the final invoice came in cheaper and without question was worth every penny! Thank you so much Mark for all hand holding, silly questions, late evening calls and getting us the result that will change our little boy’s life forever.

We recently used Baker Small Solicitors to secure the provision for our child. Our case was very complex and having lost the first tribunal (which we never should have) the LA was not ready to negotiate or showed any duty of care towards the child. As a result, our child lost over 18 months of development which he would not have, had the tribunal arrived at the right decision first time. The LA and the LA maintained school were as vindictive as they are known to be and had no regard for Child's well-being or development.

At that juncture, we knew we had to go to tribunal again to secure the right provision for our child, and we had to go with the RIGHT legal representation. Mark came recommended to us by a couple of other parents in our borough.

When we approached Mark, he reviewed our paper work and guided us through the maze of SEN. Mark advised us through each and every step very professionally and with his thorough knowledge of the SEN Legal system. His communication with the LA and the School ensured that we were not put under the pressure tactics which LA regularly employs.

We found him most polite and very professional throughout.

Baker Small Solicitors helped us find the professionals who are not just exceptional in their field but are expert witnesses as well.

Having gone through the first tribunal without a legal rep, we understood the importance of a good legal representation and advice. Mark’s legal expertise in the SEN world is second to none.

Mark's knowledge and professionalism helped us secure the right provision and placement for our child. We are extremely thankful to Mark who stayed with us at every step and had often put us at ease whenever we were worried or nervous. We are grateful to his entire team at Baker Small Solicitors, especially Ms Monica Shuman who has been exceptional and very kind.

We would highly recommend Mark and his team at Baker Small Solicitors to other parents trying to secure the right provision for their children.

After applying for an EHC Plan in 2014 and a 3 year battle with our LA, our family lost hope that we would ever get a school that would meet my grandson’s complex needs. SEN4You and Mark Small agreed to help us get the best possible outcome for our child. He provided emotional support and hope for our family. He was brilliant and relentless in helping attain the evidence needed to secure the proper EHC plan provision and school placement for my grandson. His care, concern and expertise were a life giving force for our whole family. Mark is our champion for justice. He is the “go to” man for families having poor results in negotiating SEN provision with their LA’s.

Mark came on board at the last minute to help us in our appeal. We had planned on attempting to represent ourselves but the LA threw us a curve ball and we hired him to help us. Best thing we did! He is empathetic, he knows his stuff and the LA treat him with respect. He’s give us pointers on how we may be able to avoid tribunal next year but if we do have to go back to tribunal at a later date, we will certainly return to him!

Excellent advice and support from Mark. When we spoke to other law firms they were quoting us silly money to pursue an appeal to the SEN Tribunal. We chose Baker Small because of their experience and the reasonableness of their fees. We managed to settle our appeal with the Local Authority and that was down to Mark and his approach. Highly recommended!

We used Mark for an SEN appeal following a recommendation from a friend. He was dazzling in all respects and his work ethic was incredible often returning calls late at night to ease our concerns. I work in banking and nothing is as stressful as an SEN appeal. Mark took away that stress. He told us what would happen and everything happened in exactly the way he said it would ! Our case was prepared accordingly and looking back was water tight. Mark left no stone unturned. He tore the local authority apart and they looked stupid during the hearing. I actually felt sorry for their witnesses. Winning our case was never in doubt and that was down to Mark. Great solicitor and will always be welcome in our house for what he did for us. To say he is highly recommended would be an under statement.

Mark and the team are brilliant. I wa being pushed from pillar to post and no one wanted to take responsibility for my daughter’s education. Mark and the team took that stress away and got my daughter everything she requires to continue her education with the right support in the right school. I can’t thank them enough.

SEN4You and Mark Small have given our family hope. Our adopted son has complex needs due to brain damage caused by prenatal alcohol exposure. We have been let down at every turn where education, health and social care are concerned. Services that should be provided to help support and advance children with such needs have been denied our family. The battle with our Local Authority to achieve an EHC plan for our son and a school setting that could meet all of his needs has gone on for years and left our family emotionally and physically depleted. Mark Small took on our case with ardent zeal. He was dedicated to making sure our son received the best possible outcomes. His SEN knowledge is unparalleled and we feel his tribunal experience made all the difference in the world to our case. We most definitely recommend SEN4You and Mark Small if you are looking for help in securing the best possible education outcomes for your child.

Great support and advice. I have no words for Mark. Absolutely brilliant. Highly recommend if you need a lawyer for an SEN tribunal.

There are no words to describe the amazing help and support we have received from Sen4You and Mark Small. Our adopted son has complex needs due to prenatal alcohol exposure. We have been fighting for provision which could meet all of his needs for 3 years. It has taken a toll on our family and we thought there was no hope left. Mark Small believed there was hope and took over our battle for us. Mark and his team are professional and complete SEN rock stars! They were available to us at all hours and gave us complete confidence that our son would receive the best possible outcomes. Mark spent countless hours selflessly giving to our case and not only making sure we had an airtight EHC plan but also a setting that could meet all our son’s needs. We were completely blown away by his knowledge and passion at tribunal. If you want the best possible outcomes for your child and a firm that will fight until they get them for you then we cannot recommend SEN4You and Mark Small highly enough.

We used Baker small for an SEN appeal against our LA. One word sums it up - magnificent. Can't fault the support, advice and outcome. Mark was fabulous and a real asset to have in a crisis. Don't know what we would have done without him. Highly recommend.