No DUFF - Serving WO1 needs urgent help (ARRSE Link)

[Always a Sapper]

The old cap's going round over on ARRSE (http://www.arrse.co.uk/Forums/viewtopic/t=143070/postdays=0/postorder=asc/start=0.html) again folks (do they ever stop trying to part folks from their cash?). So if there's any spare beer tokens looking for a good home..... please...

To sum things up... WO1 Mac McGearey is serving with 1 RTR. His daughter, Ciara, desperately needs specialist care, but the family been shafted by Edinburgh Council who are taking them to court.

When Ciara was 3 days old, she contracted meningitis, leaving her blind, unable to speak and suffering from a number of other disabilities. Since she was 6 months old, she's been receiving specialist treatment from the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh.

However, Mac was posted to England and she obviously had to move schools. Ciara went to a non-specialist school and didn't receive the level of care she needed, so when an opportunity came up for an Edinburgh posting, Mac took it and moved his family back. However, the council refused to fund her place at the Royal Blind School and instead offered a place at another non-specialist school.

An indepdent tribunal concluded unanimously that the Royal Blind School was Ciara's best option, and that had Mac not been in the Army, she would still be attending. They then ordered that Edinburgh Council make funding available immediately.

Rather than comply, Edinburgh council elected to take the case to court at a cost of up to £160,000 in legal fees (Ciara's education at the RBS would be approx. £38k per year).

Mac's walking 500 miles to raise the money needed to keep Ciara in school until the court case.

If you can spare even a couple of quid, please make a donation or sponsor Mac's walk. The appeal is being run by the Scottish Poppy Appeal, and there's more info - pics and the story in Mac's own words - on the links.

Links:
ARRSE (http://www.arrse.co.uk/Forums/viewtopic/t=143070/postdays=0/postorder=asc/start=0.html)
Donation (http://www.poppyscotland.org.uk/ciara/) (via Scottish Poppy Appeal)
Sponsor (http://www.poppyscotland.org.uk/ciara/) (via Scottish Poppy Appeal)

Thanks again folks

[cornish-stormrider]

I'll have some of this action. two tickets to the Outrage Bus and a boot, steel toed with hobnails, for the kicking of.....

Edited - Just fired a PBT his way. I would send them an email (the tight b4st4rds) but it would rapidly degenrate into swearing and violence. someone else do the words and put it from me as well.

[cargosales]

Deeply shameful indeed ..

From the article in The Scotsman If city won't pay Ciara's blind school fees, I will - Scotsman.com News (http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/If-city-won39t-pay-Ciara39s.6026356.jp)

"A tribunal, which was set up under the Additional Support for Learning Act, ruled in November that the Blind School was the best option for Ciara.

Calls for the council to withdraw its appeal against the ruling were yesterday rejected.

A motion was submitted in private to the full council meeting by Councillor Jason Rust asking the council to withdraw its appeal.

It was backed by his fellow Tory councillors, along with the Greens and Labour, but the administration voted in favour of continuing the appeal and it won on the casting vote of Lord Provost George Grubb."


That'd be Lord Lieutenant and Lord Provost of the City of Edinburgh The Right Honourable George Grubb to be exact [Honourable? Really??], more about whom can be found here The City of Edinburgh Council - The Rt Hon George Grubb (http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/internet/council/council_business/lord_provost/cec_the_rt_hon_george_grubb)

including this "He served as a Squadron Leader Chaplain in the Royal Air Force from 1962-70 in Cosford, Scampton, Germany and Cyprus. During that time he toured Tehran, Aden, Malta and Tripoli."

It is deeply shameful that he apparantly learned nothing during that time.

But more worrying perhaps that as a politician he could not predict what is likely to happen when he gets hit by the ARRSE outrage bus. I predict it will not be pretty.

CS

[Molemot]

Thrown my bit in the cap...as for Sqn Ldr Grubb; words fail me. Nice one, Padre!!!

[glad rag]

George’s hobbies include jogging, running, reading, and spending time with his family.

Sounds like a real live wire then.

However I think that you cannot blame him in isolation as it was a council decision.

Far better there had been an unanimous decision in favour.

All this shown just how petty and skewed those who profess to represent their wards are.

GR.

[Daf Hucker]

I wonder how much the decision was influenced by the fact he's a serviceman and therefore "not a local"?

[Two-Tone-Blue]

I just hope HIS God looks down on him and smiles benignly. Somehow I doubt that.

However, there are undoubtedly some rules that say the Chairman or whatever has to vote in a certain way to sustain the status quo.

I know where the Outrage Bus is parked, in case I'm wrong ;)

[chippy63]

Sure, you can blame Grubb, his was the casting vote.

I'll be calling Edinburgh Council on Monday morning- 0131 529 4000

Check Grubb out at [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Grubb]George Grubb - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/url

[OmegaV6]

Links to the story sent to :

BBC
ITV
Daily Express
Sunday Express
Telegraph
Times

If others do the same then a groundswell of opinion MIGHT make them run the story ???

[barnstormer1968]

Not only did this put me on the outrage bus, but I'm on the top deck in the front seats, for the best view!

I hate to go all left wing sounding (and thus military hating, which I am clearly not), but I can imagine that if the parents had been 'travellers', the local council would have intervened and forced the child into the specialist school. They would probably even have taken the mum and dad to court, if they tried to stop the child attending!

What is the best way for us to help. If we fund the child's place, then does the council still win, as they won't be paying?

[cargosales]

What is the best way for us to help. If we fund the child's place, then does the council still win, as they won't be paying?


Barnstormer, you are quite right, albeit some immediate dosh will ensure this child is in an appropriate school when her dad deploys to Afghanistan later this year. And hopefully in the short term enough cash can be raised to cover the time until he gets back so that it isn't preying on his or his family's mind while he's over there.

What is really needed to rectify this shameful situation though is publicity. And LOTS of it. The nasty, probing, embarrassing kind of media attention that politicians really hate, especially when elections are looming. And which can be generated if enough 'outraged members of the public' call, email and generally pester newspapers, radio stations and the like until those media organisations take notice and start to report on it.

So, please get writing and calling ..

CS

Edit to add: You could also try this: I have just sent an email to the good Mr Grubby, copying it to LibDem HQ and Nick Clegg personally, explaining that if this is their policy on education, then I won't be voting for them again. I may not have been quite as polite as that but you get the general idea.

If they get one email like that they will probably cheerfully ignore it but if they start to get lots then alarm bells may start to ring .....

[ColliedogWizard]

Donation made & story posted on another forum I frequent. Donations being made from there too.

Local authorities are dreadfull with Special Needs, we have to fight for everything.

Good luck to Ciara & her family.

[Two-Tone-Blue]

Thanks to all who are throwing their shoulders to the wheel. Great work :ok:

[CR2]

Chippy63 the "invalid hash" is an error message that ain't your fault.

I'm pretty sure you're trying to post an email address.

Write "at" instead of "@", will no doubt trick the system. :ugh:

[chippy63]

Not my fault? There's a first!!
Thanks, CR2!
lord.provost.at.edinburgh.gov.uk
Why didn't I think of that?

[SirToppamHat]

I received this response just now:

Thank you for your email to The Lord Provost. Councillor Marilyne MacLaren, Convener of Education & Children and Families, has responded on behalf of the Council as follows:


Thank you for your email/letter on the case of Ciara McGearey. You will understand that I cannot give the details surrounding the decision of the Children and Families Department to appeal the Tribunal’s decision, as it is both subjudice, and confidential regarding the child’s circumstances.

I can however, assure you that this decision was not taken lightly. The Department has only appealed 2 cases out of 27 on which the Tribunal has ruled, and was successful in both these two. The well being of the child has been paramount in the deliberation of the Department, and I think it is useful to point out that the preferred option of Oaklands School is a new, purpose built facility with special features for visually impaired children. Classes are small with high staff to pupil ratio. As Oaklands is a local authority school a placement is available at no additional cost.

Yours sincerely,

Councillor Marilyne MacLaren

It seems Grubb is not able or willing to defend himself in person; what an embarassment.

STH

[cargosales]

It seems Grubb is not able or willing to defend himself in person; what an embarassment.


Think yourself lucky to have had even such a belated reply. The wretched creature hasn't responded to my own email at all, not even giving it to some toady to deal with, as he seems to have done with yours.

I suppose both scenarios only go to prove what we already knew though - that grubs have no backbone whatsoever.

CS

[teeteringhead]

He served as a Squadron Leader Chaplain in the Royal Air Force from 1962-70 in Cosford, Scampton, Germany and Cyprus. During that time he toured Tehran, Aden, Malta and Tripoli. ... strange then that the only Grubb in the RAF Retired List is one Sqn Ldr DW Grubb, a pilot and QFI, who retired in 1976 after a full career .....

...... surely the Rt Hon George is not also a Walt ......:confused:

[Two-Tone-Blue]

The Notes on the contents page of my Retired List [1995 edition] states:

The Royal Air Force Retired List is published biennially, showing officers who have retired from permanent commissions.

Given Grubb's service from 62-70, it could be assumed he did an 8-year SSC ... and is thus not eligible for inclusion in the Retired List.


That is an extremely fair and well-balanced input, by my standards. I shall speak to myself sharply about that. ;)

[teeteringhead]

T-T-B I stand corrected, foolishly thinking that Scraper=PC.

Not so of course for our God-Botherers - or Quacks or Fang-Farriers either I s'pose ...

..... would have been a good story though! :E