The members of Matrix’ education law team are specialists in Education Law with considerable expertise and experience of writing, advising, training and litigating in education law. That expertise overlaps with expertise in public law more generally, human rights law, local government law, employment law and discrimination law.

Our aim is to provide a friendly, effective, and comprehensive service to parents/children, NGOs including charities, schools, colleges, universities and Local Education Authorities.

As a team and as individuals, we have been identified as "leading" practitioners in education law by the Legal 500 and the Chambers & Partners guide.

We are regularly instructed in cases involving:

  - Special educational needs including appeals to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal, appeals from the SENDIST to the High Court and above, and judicial review challenges to compel delivery of provision in a Statement of Special Educational Needs

  - Discrimination including on grounds disability, sex, race, sexual identity or religion throughout the education system (including in schools, colleges and universities)

  - Discipline matters including exclusions from schools,  colleges and universities, including judicial review challenges to decisions of governing bodies and Independent Appeal Panels

  - Admissions including judicial review and discrimination challenges to admissions criteria decisions of Admissions Appeal Panels

  - School closures and school re-organisations including judicial review challenges to pre-closure consultations and decisions of School Organisation Committees

  - Employment questions that are specific to the education field in both maintained and independent schools
Educational negligence and other damages claims in both maintained and independent schools

  - University and college matters including admission and disciplinary cases, including those involving a "visitor"

Members of our team have recently been involved in the leading cases in areas such as reinstatement of excluded pupils, the jurisdiction of the SENDIST, the contents of Statements of Special Educational Needs, and the “inclusion” into mainstream of pupils with SEN.

Further information on matrix education law practice, and the experience of individual members of the team, can be obtained from the group co-ordinator David Wolfe or the Matrix Practice Management staff.