Daily roundup 16 April: Legal action, YOI disturbance, and fake marriage breakdowns

Families of children with special needs are joining forces to fund legal action against local authorities in England that are cutting budgets. The Guardian reports that Alicia McColl, whose 14-year-old son Kian has autism, raised £2,600 via the crowdsourcing website CrowdJustice to help pay for a judicial review of Surrey County Council's proposals to cut its special educational needs and disabilities budget by £20m. A similar challenge is under way in Hackney, London.


Young people "threw paint and smashed fire alarms" during a disturbance at a young offender institution. The BBC reports that four prison officers suffered minor injuries in the trouble at HMYOI Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, which holds 18- to 21-year-olds. The disturbance was a protest over a lack of showers and time out of their cells.


Parents are faking marriage breakdowns to get their children into a top school amid a rise in admission fraud, an expert has warned. The Telegraph reports that according to The Good Schools Guide's state school specialist Elizabeth Coatman, competition to secure places at the most sought after schools has intensified, with parents increasingly resorting to fraudulent means to boost their chances.


Young people from across the UK will attend the Commonwealth Youth Forum as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting taking place in London. Young people in attendance will discuss the solutions for a fairer, more secure, sustainable and prosperous future. A total of 47 young representatives will gather with other young people from across the Commonwealth to build cross-cultural connections and networks, debate the challenges facing young people, and agree youth-led initiatives to influence decision makers and ensure young people have a voice in its future.


Military families have been given £246m of taxpayers' money over the past three years to subsidise their children's private education, it has emerged. The Telegraph reports that elite schools such as Eton, Harrow and Gordonstoun alone received nearly £2m last year, under a Ministry of Defence scheme that helps servicemen and women pay school fees.