Leader of the county council Liz Leffman is stepping in temporarily to run SEND services at Oxfordshire County Council.

She told Radio Oxford: "I'm personally stepping in.

"I'm going to be holding that space on behalf of the council and on behalf of our children and residents."

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She will appoint two deputies.

She added: "One will be taking over as children's services cabinet portfolio holder but I'm also appointing somebody who will have 100 per cent of their vision on the SEND portfolio.

"They will be actively looking at improving our services in that area."

Meanwhile it has been revealed that there will be a newly created position of cabinet member for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

This and other appointments – including cabinet member for children’s services – will be announced later this week.

It comes after Oxfordshire County Council’s ruling Fair Deal Alliance of Liberal Democrats, Labour and Green parties collapsed on Sunday afternoon, as the Labour Party pulled out of the coalition that has run the council since 2021.

Council leader and Lib Dem chief Liz Leffman claimed that she had told the Labour group she would ‘remove’ Labour leader Cllr Liz Brighouse as cabinet member for children’s services unless she stepped down and took a different cabinet post.

She said she was ‘disappointed’ that Labour had chosen to leave the alliance, but added that it was clear Cllr Brighouse had ‘lost the support of many parents’ of SEND children.

Oxford Mail: Oxfordshire County Council leader Liz LeffmanOxfordshire County Council leader Liz Leffman (Image: Oxford Mail)

Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, Layla Moran, welcomed Cllr Leffman's decision to step into the role. 

She said: "I'm pleased to see that Liz Leffman is taking the Oxfordshire SEND report seriously and committing to working with parents to reform the service.

"This is what proper leadership looks like."

Oxford Mail: MP Layla Moran MP Layla Moran (Image: Oxford Mail)

An alliance of the Liberal Democrats, Labour and Green Party took over from the Conservative leadership of Oxfordshire County Council in 2021.

In a statement, the 14-strong Labour group said the council faced "significant problems" concerning SEND "that require us to work as a team and take collective responsibility".

"Unfortunately, the Liberal Democrats have shown that they aren't interested in working together and instead simply want to score points and pass blame," they added.

Labour councillor Damian Haywood quit the party over the "deeply troubling and upsetting" report over the weekend. 

Mr Haywood, whose son has learning difficulties, said: "The dissolution of the Oxon Alliance by the Labour Group is very disappointing.

"The Ofsted report was clear, new leadership was needed to deliver for SEND families.

"Rather than take this action Labour decided to walk away, making these urgently required changes more difficult."

Last week, Oxfordshire Send Parent Action, a collection of 90 parents, wrote to Cllr Leffman calling for Cllr Brighouse’s resignation.

“We do not consider it credible or tenable that stability, good governance and effective scrutiny can happen at OCC without a change in leadership,” a spokesperson for the group said.