After “two years of hell” a 13-year-old girl has won her battle with Sutton Council to get a place at a special needs school.

Ellie-Mai O’Reilly’s family said they have been battling to get the youngster the support she needs since she was four.

According to her parents, Ellie-Mai, who has a missing lower arm, ADHD and autism, was denied an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) by the council which sets out extra support she needed in school.

She was placed in a mainstream secondary school of 1,000 people because she didn’t have this vital document. 

Earlier this year, Ellie-Mai finally received an EHCP and secure a place at a specialist school in South London

She started at the new school on Monday but step-mum Faye Underhill said the journey to this point has been difficult.

She branded the support from Cognus, Sutton Council’s special needs service which it owns, “shocking”.

The 36-year-old said: “When she started secondary school we weren’t allowed to apply for a special needs school because she didn’t have an EHCP.

"We had to send her to a mainstream school, it was two years of hell, she was a target for bullies.

“We physically had to make her go to school, it was absolutely heartbreaking, all you want is the best for your child.

"The damage that has been done is irreparable, she has tics when she thinks about it and we have to give her constant reassurance.

“There aren’t any words for how it felt actually taking her to school on Monday, it felt like the missing link for Ellie.

"It has had an instant impact, she is already so much more relaxed.

"This has been a work in progress for about nine years.”

Ellie-Mai’s new start comes a year after she presented a petition with more than 11,000 signatures to Downing Street.

It was part of national campaign Let us Learn which is calling on the government to increase support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

When contacted, Sutton Council said it did not comment on individual places.