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SEN Legal > Bury St Edmunds, England > Firm Profile

SEN Legal Offices

SEN Legal
3 - 4 FORBES BUSINESS CENTRE
KEMPSON WAY
BURY ST EDMUNDS
IP32 7AR
England
Email firm Visit website 01284 723 952 01284 702 008
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SEN Legal > The Legal 500 Rankings

Public sector Tier 2

Based in East Anglia, SEN Legal has a truly nationwide client base for education, special educational needs and disability work. The 'very bright, super-organised' Hayley Dawn Mason in Cambridge and, in Bury St Edmunds, founding partner Melinda Nettleton (who is 'a trailblazer in the field of SEN law'), senior solicitor Nicole Lee and the 'bright and proactive' James Brown act on behalf of parents to solve complex problems and secure special educational provisions for children and young people.

Practice head(s):

Hayley Dawn Mason; Melinda Nettleton

Other key lawyers:

Nicole Lee; James Brown

Testimonials

‘This firm is a seriously well-oiled machine. Every single member of the team has in-depth expert knowledge of the law and practice relating to SEN, disability discrimination and Court of Protection work. They have a firm-wide systematic approach to case preparation that guarantees a well-prepped case in advance of the hearing. Most importantly, they are passionate about the welfare and interests of children and young people with special educational needs and that shines through in every aspect of their work.’

‘Hayley Mason – very bright, super-organised, huge depth of experience and unparalleled knowledge of FTT practice and procedure. A star.’

‘Nicole Lee is a highly experienced and approachable practitioner who is always on top of her cases.’

‘James Brown – a bright, proactive member of the team – one to watch.’

‘Melinda Nettleton, the founding partner of the firm and a trailblazer in the field.’

‘SEN Legal’s knowledge of education law is really second to none. Their particular strength lies in the field of special educational needs and disability law but they are also developing a strong Court of Protection Team. They have an impressive knowledge base and really are leaders in the field.’

‘Hayley Mason is wise beyond her years. Hayley is knowledgeable, incredibly resilient and will fight her client’s case utterly fearlessly.’

‘Melinda Nettleton brings a wealth of experience to the table. An established practitioner, there is little she does not know. She is exceptionally good with clients, particularly those who are vulnerable themselves.’

Work highlights

  • Successfully obtained an “Education Otherwise than at School” arrangement for a client of 2 days within a therapeutic educational setting, and 3 days at home education programme, with SALT, OT and Clinical Psychology integrated across all environments.
  • Acted for clients to secure an additional year at a specialist provision despite the young person being older than the schools registration. Successfully applied to the Department of Education to vary the school’s registration in relation to this pupil.
  • Achieved a 52-week waking day specialist residential setting for a young person, fully funded by the Local Authority at the cost of £305,000 annually.

Public sector > Education: individuals Tier 2

SEN Legal provides a 'personal, compassionate and highly professional service' exclusively in relation to special educational needs and disabilities as they relate to education law. The 'outstanding' Haley Mason is an 'excellent negotiator'; she jointly heads up the firm, which acts for clients throughout England and Wales, with founding partner Melinda Nettleton.

Practice head(s):

Hayley Mason; Melinda Nettleton

Other key lawyers:

James Brown

Testimonials

‘SEN Legal are the best EHC Plan lawyers out there. Their cases are impeccably well run. If I had a disabled child needing help with their EHC Plan, this would be the firm I would use. They have access to the best experts and the best knowledge of SEN out of any firm in the country.’

‘Hayley Mason is outstanding. She exudes confidence in her work, and rightly so, because she pretty much always wins.’

‘Hayley and her team have been amazing. They have supported us through the daunting, frustrating EHCP process. They are incredibly knowledgeable about SEN and have guided us expertly through the maze.’

‘Honest, personable and real. Hayley was a great listener and explained the process clearly followed with written process to refer to!’

‘We worked with Melinda Nettleton for the first 15 years of our time being supported by SEN Legal and she was our solicitor during our successful Educational Tribunal process to secure a place at a residential college for our severely autistic son. Melinda is highly knowledgeable and uses her many years of experience to give advice which is clear and, in our situation, helped us make good decisions for our son. As a legal representative she is robust and direct which gave us confidence at a time when we were feeling quite helpless. She is a powerful ally to have when facing the substantial resources of a Local Authority.’

SEN Legal > Firm Profile

SEN Legal are a national and highly specialist legal practice with an excellent reputation. We have over 20 years’ experience in SEN and disability work, acting on behalf of parents to solve complex problems and to secure special educational provision for children and young persons aged 0-25.

SEN Legal are one of the only law firms to provide legal advice exclusively in relation to special educational needs and disability. We do not perform any other type of law (property, wills, etc) so clients can be reassured that all of our Solicitors are expert in what they do. Our team also contains people who have personal experience of SEN and Disability so can understand our client’s difficulties on a personal and professional level.

SEN Legal also undertake Court of Protection work for  young people who have lifelong learning disabilities, and whose parents are seeking to become Deputies to manage their property and affairs and health and personal welfare. Health and Welfare applications to the Court of Protection are incredibly complex applications to make.

We are extremely proud of our consistent success rate of over 90% for the last decade. In 2020 we achieved a success rate of 98% (of over 200 cases).

With a National client base  across England and Wales, the majority of our clients are London Based. Whatever a client’s problem, we can help. We believe in achieving the best possible outcome in the most efficient and cost-effective manner. There is no job too big or small.

At SEN Legal we are approachable, client-focused and supportive. We offer a sympathetic understanding to families who feel they have been let down by their Local Authority. We offer an extremely committed, family-friendly approach to our work. Whilst we are proud of our reputation for robust representation for our clients, SEN Legal’s main aim is that every child/young person has a right to an education and the provision of therapeutic and/or Social Services input irrespective of means.

​SEN Legal also provide pro-bono talks/seminars/workshops across England and Wales for any charity/parent group/Not for Profit organization/school that approach us in order to spread knowledge to those that would not otherwise receive it. We offer our services at such events free of charge.  Similarly, we produce a free quarterly newsletter (for parents and separately for schools/professionals) outlining current issues, key deadlines, case law updates and things to be aware of. We also provide free information and resources to parents across all of our social media channels.

Main Contacts

DepartmentNameEmailTelephone
Director & Senior Solicitor Hayley Masonhayley.mason@senlegal.co.uk01284 723952
Director & Founder Melinda Nettletonmanager@senlegal.co.uk01284 723952

Lawyer Profiles

PhotoNamePositionProfile
James Brown  photo James Brown Specialist SolicitorView Profile
Rebecca De Winter  photo Rebecca De Winter Trainee SolicitorView Profile
Idhren Drew  photo Idhren Drew ParalegalView Profile
Kyra Harvey  photo Kyra Harvey Customer Service Team MemberView Profile
Allys Kelsey  photo Allys Kelsey ParalegalView Profile
Wendy Kitchin  photo Wendy Kitchin ParalegalView Profile
Nicole Lee  photo Nicole Lee Specialist SolicitorView Profile
Hayley Mason  photo Hayley Mason Senior SolicitorView Profile
Melinda Nettleton photo Melinda NettletonDirector & Principal SolicitorView Profile
Michael Nettleton  photo Michael Nettleton Customer Service Team MemberView Profile
Richard Nettleton  photo Richard Nettleton Trainee SolicitorView Profile
Sophie Norris  photo Sophie Norris ParalegalView Profile

Staff Figures

Solicitors : 4
Trainee Solicitors : 3
Paralegals : 4
Support Staff : 3

    Firm Rankings

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  • Public sector > Education: individuals
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