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Some Sheffield schools are unprepared for dealing with children who have special needs, says a councillor.

Coun Anne Murphy, who is a respite foster carer, spoke out after director of education Andrew Jones said he was “truly sorry” that parents of disabled children have been let down by the council.

Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission recently revisited Sheffield Council after a previous inspection found significant weaknesses in its special educational needs and disabilities provision.

The latest inspection report hasn’t yet been published but Mr Jones admitted the council still hadn’t made enough progress with the way children transition through services.

Coun Anne Murphy says parents of SEND children in Sheffield have faced a lot of challenges over recent years getting the right education for them

‘Schools don’t understand the challenges’

Coun Murphy said: “It’s really good to hear Andrew apologise but I didn’t hear a lot about the involvement of carers and parents.

“Schools in particular really don’t understand some of the challenges the young people present to them, they’re not prepared for it.

“Even if funding is in place for extra support in schools, it seems to be quite a challenge for a lot of the schools to actually manage it.

Sheffield schools ‘struggling to cope with pupils who have special needs and disabilities’