COVER -- Disabled Children and the Law: Research and Good Practice Seco nd Edition -- Contents -- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS -- Chapter 1 Introduction -- What is this book about? -- Who is this book for? -- How this book is organised -- Part I Research, the Law and Good Practice -- Chapter 2 Human Rights, Ethics and Values -- Introduction -- Quality of life and human rights -- Understanding disability -- Whose perspectives? -- The significance of social groupings and social divisions -- Relationships between service users and providers -- The law and its application -- Chapter 3 Research and Good Practice -- Overview -- Key debates and social trends -- Disabled children and their families: common needs and problems -- Valued service provision -- Concluding remarks -- Chapter 4 The Law and Frequently Encountered Legal Obstacles -- Introduction -- Special note on terminology -- What is meant by 'the law' -- The general obligations and powers of the statutory agencies -- The specific obligations of local authorities -- The specific obligations of children and adult education services -- The specific obligations of housing authorities -- The NHS's obligations to disabled children -- Cooperation among the statutory agencies -- Transitional periods in a disabled child's lifecourse -- The disabled child's perspective -- Children's social services -- Education -- NHS services -- The perspective of parents and siblings -- Confidentiality and access to information -- Procedures for making representations and complaints -- Chapter 5 The Early Years -- Introduction -- Families' experience of the early years -- Valued and effective approaches to meeting the needs of children and their families -- Legal commentary -- Introduction -- The NHS and hospital services -- Children's social services -- The role of children's education services.

Educational responsibilities of health and social services -- Chapter 6 The School Years -- Introduction -- Increasing autonomy and choice for the disabled child -- Getting a decent education -- Leisure, play and social life -- Personal, material and practical support needs of individuals and families -- Legal commentary -- Introduction -- Education -- Disability discrimination and education -- Social services -- Health services -- Chapter 7 Becoming an Adult -- Introduction -- What it means to become an adult -- Disabled young people and transition to adulthood -- Representation, support and information -- Service provision and planning for transition to adult life -- Legal commentary -- Introduction -- Education services' responsibilities -- Social services -- NHS responsibilities -- The Independent Living Fund -- Housing responsibilities -- Mental capacity and parental wills/trusts -- Chapter 8 Children Who Live Away from Home -- Introduction -- The deficit of information and data -- Concluding remarks -- Legal commentary -- Introduction -- Terminology -- Local authority duties to looked-after children -- Specific accommodation arrangements -- Part II Resource Materials -- Appendix 1 Complaints Materials -- Local authority complaints procedures -- NHS complaints materials -- Appendix 2 Social Services Materials -- The social services assessment and care-planning obligations -- Services for disabled children -- Social services' responsibilities towards carers -- The power of social services departments to charge for services -- Appendix 3 Disabled Facilities Grants Materials -- Mandatory grants -- Eligibility -- Timescales -- Appendix 4 Precedent Letters -- Letter 1: Requesting the initial involvement of social services -- Letter 2: Expressing concern about failure of hospital discharge planning -- Letter 3: Complaint to children's social services.

Letter 4: Expressing concern about the failure of the NHS to provide adequate speech or language therapy assistance -- Letter 5: Requesting the initial involvement of LEA for child under 5 years old -- Letter 6: Requesting access to files -- REFERENCES -- SUBJECT INDEX -- INDEX OF LEGISLATION AND GUIDANCE -- AUTHOR INDEX.