PM vows to intervene on Essex school 'sibling ban' row

The prime minister has promised to intervene on a school's "sibling ban" rule that prevents a family with a severely disabled child attending milestone events.

Natasha and James say their six-year-old daughter, Hollie, who attends Benyon Primary in South Ockendon, Essex, is often left in tears as they cannot attend plays and parents' evenings.

Hollie's three-year-old brother William has profound, life-limiting disabilities. He needs 24/7 care, making childcare harder to find.

The Catalyst Academies Trust, which runs the school, denies a ban. But, like many schools, limits some events to parents only for "practical and safety reasons".

Since the school's rule change last September, William's parents say they have missed parents' evenings, singing events, progress meetings, phonics lessons, special assemblies and school plays.

Natasha, 40, was a nursery nurse until William's birth, when she became his full-time carer.

His dad James is a regional sales manager and is often away with work, leaving Natasha unable to attend events because she has no one to leave him with.

She said Hollie often "ends up sitting crying in the crowd because she can't see her mum or her dad in the audience", adding: "That breaks my heart."

Jen Craft, Labour MP for Thurrock, raised the family's story at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, and told the BBC that the trust had done little to respond to her concerns.

"William is a delightful little boy. As they cannot bring William or leave him with a babysitter this effectively means that Hollie's parents also stay away from school events."

She said the trust had "repeatedly refused to make an exception.. or meet with myself to discuss ways forward".

Prime Minister Andy Burnham replied that he had asked the Department for Education to speak to the trust "to resolve this situation without delay".

Craft told the BBC the trust "made me want to tear my hair out," adding: "They were completely unreceptive to me from day one.

"For me it is a lack of compassion and a lack of seeing how they can best support disabled families."

The family has recently acquired nine hours of respite a week through Thurrock Council.

Natasha says this is vital for her, as William is "restless" in the night and she does not sleep, but often the support does not coincide with school events.

Tony Parfett, the trust chief executive, said: "For some events we need to control the number of attendees for practical and safety reasons. There is no ban on siblings attending these kinds of events."

He said WiIliam's parents "brought their son to a parent-only event in September 2025 and were advised that attendance was limited to two parents per pupil.

"They had the option of one parent staying with their son while the other attended the event but instead chose to leave. This September, one parent attended the same parent-only event."

He offered to speak to the family "to seek further arrangements that can be made to assist their attendance at scheduled events while remaining fair to all parents".

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