A MOTHER says she will be forced to home-school her son because he was not offered a place at the school best suited to cater for his illnesses.

Josh Hubbard, four, was offered a place at Kendall Primary in Colchester, his second choice school, and started introductory sessions with mum Chrissie Palmer.

However, Miss Palmer rejected the place because the school was unable to cater for his medical needs.

Josh, who is due to start school in September, has epilepsy, is badly allergic to egg and is being tested for Crohn’s disease at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

After turning down the place, Miss Palmer was told the only schools left with places were St Michaels, in Camulodunum Road, and Camulos Academy, in Whitmore Drive, three and four miles from her home in Winchester Road respectively.

However, Miss Palmer cannot drive because she has epilepsy.

Her first choice was St George’s Infants in nearby Canterbury Road but it was oversubscribed.

Miss Palmer said: “Josh loses control of his bowel when he has a seizure, which means he needs to be changed.

“Some seizures are caused by stress, which will only increase when he starts school, and others happen when he has absent seizures, which means his brain switches off.

“Many schools say they don’t have the staff to take Josh to the toilet, so when this happens I will have to go in and change him.”

Because Josh requires extra care, Miss Palmer needs medical teams to go into whatever school he goes to beforehand so staff can be trained in how best to care for him.

In a last-ditch effort, Miss Palmer appealed the decision not to send Josh to his first choice school, but it was turned down as it already has 30 children in the class.

She has been told she must home school Josh.

She said: “I can’t believe in 2016 my son hasn’t been given a school he can go to simply because he has medical conditions. I don’t have a clue how to home school.

“The council really needs to look at the medical history of children and how it affects their school places.

“I don’t want any other child going through this.”

Kendall Primary School declined to comment.

Ray Gooding, county councillor responsible for education, said: “We assist parents in trying to secure an alternative school if they are unhappy with the place offered. Parents who refused a place have the right to appeal to an independent panel.

“Pupil care arrangements is a matter for individual schools.”