A Brighton and Hove charity has warned the council that proposed changes to its home to school transport policy could be illegal.
Mascot, a local parent-led voluntary organisation for families with children on the autism spectrum, also said that the changes could put young lives in danger.
It gave the warning in a response to a public consultation by Brighton and Hove City Council.
The charity said: “There are a number of points in the proposed policy which we feel do not fully take into account the needs of children and young people with autism.
“Many children and young people with autism lack road safety and crossing the road, even just to reach a bus stop, can be a life-threatening activity.
Mascot said: “At present the draft policy demonstrates a disregard for all disabled children.
“If a child has a SEN (special educational need) and/or disability, the local authority should not seek to introduce additional criteria for school transport … We believe this is unlawful.
“We also feel the draft policy shows a lack of understanding of the difficulties encountered by children and young people with autism.”
Mascot also said that the draft policy proposal that parents who received mobility allowance “will be expected to use it to take their children to school” was unlawful.
The charity said: “The purpose of the mobility component of DLA (disability living allowance) is to provide financial support to compensate disabled people for the fact that they have high unavoidable costs relating to mobility, not to subsidise local authorities.
“If reducing costs is a priority for the (council), the introduction of unenforceable policies is a false economy since the cost of appeals by parents and any ensuing litigation would mitigate any savings made in addition to causing suffering to children and their families.”
Mascot represents about 180 people, mostly parents of school-age children who are being educated in Brighton and Hove.
The consultation closed on Friday (27 February).
