By TIM WATKIN
Associate Education Minister Lianne Dalziel tried to scupper court action against the Government by offering the complainants places on two ministerial committees considering special education reform.
Ms Dalziel offered the deal late last year to 16 families seeking a judicial review of the Government's special education policies.
The proposal was confirmed by John Minto, a spokesman for the Quality Public Education Committee, which is supporting the families' case.
"I can confirm that there was an offer for us to participate on two committees on the basis that the case was dropped, and that that was rejected by the parents."
Ms Dalziel denied any misappropriate behaviour, but said she would not comment on anything that was discussed in confidential meetings.
The committees were to review the Government's policy on special education. The first, which met last month, was considering the future of Specialist Education Services. The second was an Education Ministry working party set up to look at staffing issues at special needs units and "magnet schools," which have a higher-than-average number of students with moderate needs, Mr Minto said.
The families initiated the case against the previous Government after the introduction of its SE2000 policy in 1997.
The parents claim both Governments failed to meet their children's special education needs under section 9 of the Education Act 1989.
The legal action was put on hold when the Labour Government commissioned a review of special education services by education researcher Cathy Wylie last April. But the parents were disappointed with Ms Wylie's report and restarted litigation.
Linda Daniels, the lead complainant and mother of a girl with a development disability, said putting the case on hold brought them nothing.
When asked about Ms Dalziel's offer, she said: "There was the offer of helping out with a few things, a few committees."
Ms Dalziel said she was keen for the court case to be settled.
"I'm in an impossible position because I can't defend myself, but I will make the point that I have made many times, that there is nothing to be gained from this case.
"We're on the same side; we want to achieve the same things. I don't want to see these parents dragged through the court on a mission that cannot produce a result even if they win.
"I'm confident we're heading in the direction they were seeking when they launched the action ... so I would dearly love to see them withdraw. "
Opposition education spokesman Gerry Brownlie said, "It's a very strange way of going about Government business. It's a pretty cynical way of dealing with people who have a real issue."
The families' lawyer, Grant Illingworth, said the parents felt the Government had failed to address their concerns.
A judicial conference will be held with the Crown Law Office in early May and a court date will be set.
Meanwhile, the Weekend Herald has obtained a document written last month that outlines four confidential options for the fate of Specialist Education Services,
to be considered by the cabinet in the next three weeks.
The options are:
* Disestablish SES and set up a network of district resource centres
* Retain SES but move to a stronger regional focus
* Disestablish SES and allocate its resources to clusters
* Disestablish SES and set up four separate entities based on four regions.
Ms Dalziel said cabinet agendas and discussions were confidential, but "it's February now.
"All I'm saying is that things have moved on and a number of options were thrown up in the consultation process."
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