A BRIDGWATER mum is in despair as her four-year-old son has been placed at a different school to his disabled brother.

Levi Roberts, aged 8, has a life limiting condition called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic disorder characterised by progressive muscle degeneration and weakness.

He was diagnosed at the age of one and has just taken delivery of his first motorised wheelchair.

His mum Claire Watts says Northgate Primary School have been 'brilliant at accepting Levi's needs' since he joined the school after a previously difficult school placement.

"Levi's school attendance is currently improving and needs to be monitored carefully; he attends a number of medical appointments throughout the year.

"His essential physiotherapy requires him to miss lesson time every day."

Levi's younger brother Harvey Watts is due to start school this September but has been refused a place at Northgate, instead being told to go to St Mary's CEVC Primary School.

Mrs Watts said: "Having the two children at different schools means not only have I got the challenge of getting a child with additional mobility needs ready for school and into his specialist vehicle, but I would then have to drop off his brother at school first.

"This will result in Levi missing the first and last hour of each day.

"Alternatively I could put Levi into breakfast club at the cost of £50 per month and ask my 11-year-old daughter to rush from secondary school to wait with her brother until I can get there, missing any opportunity for her to attend additional activities.

"Neither option, in my opinion, is acceptable.

"Placing Harvey in a different school to his brother would be detrimental to Levi's health, education and the families general wellbeing."

Mrs Watts' husband is self-employed and his work prevents him from helping with the school run - meanwhile once Claire has completed the task of dropping the kids off, she has to be in Weston-super-Mare for 9.30am where she works as a Post Office clerk.

Mrs Watts says she has been through the appeal process with Somerset County Council and been refused, with the appeal panel concluding that Northgate had already allocated its maximum of 30 reception class places correctly, and an additional child would 'breach the infant class size limit'.

However both Somerset County Council and Northgate Primary School seem to imply the other party is responsible for the outcome.

A spokesman for Northgate Primary School said: "Applications for school places are completely and solely an issue for the local authority, Somerset County Council. They decide on the appeals and the children that are allocated to each school."

However a spokesman for Somerset County Council said: "We don’t comment on individual cases, though we would stress that Northgate School is an Academy and is allowed to set their own admission criteria.

“We have a fair and independent appeals process and whatever the outcome, we will always continue to work with a family and child to ensure a school place is offered.”