PARENTS of autistic children should be more heavily consulted by education chiefs, a charity has said.

TreeHouse made the comments after the plight of Exeter boy Rico Compton was raised by the Echo. The severely autistic eight-year-old's mother, Marie, has been fighting to get her son into a specialist school since March.

The St Thomas resident says she has been told that Rico's present school, Mill Water, in Honiton, can no longer cope with the severity of her son's disability.

Rico struggles with speech, cannot go to the toilet on his own, and was recently diagnosed with severe sensory processing disorder, which means his senses are impaired.

He also has Pica, an eating disorder which makes him swallow non-food items.

Miss Compton wants Devon County Council to fund a place for Rico at the Forum, a special school in Blandford Forum, Dorset, which has a high staff-to-pupil ratio, with experts in dealing with severely autistic children.

But Miss Compton has been told the council is likely to recommend that he should be educated at Oaklands Park School, Dawlish. The former singer wants to challenge the decision at a tribunal but cannot do so until she gets a Special Educational Needs (SEN) report from the county council.

She claims the authority has been dragging its feet in producing the report and will not return her calls or tell her when she can expect the report.

TreeHouse, the national charity for autism education, said families of autistic children were often frustrated by the services provided to them by local education authorities.

Mark Atkinson, director of communication, policy and research at TreeHouse, said: "All too frequently there are barriers between the local authority and the family that prevent timely action being taken to support children with autism.

"This is why TreeHouse is calling for greater participation of children and young people with autism and their families in local services because we know they are experts in autism and that involving them in development will help to design better services to meet their needs."

Miss Compton says that until she gets the report from the council her and her son's future is uncertain.

The Forum specialises in treating children with severe autism and has residential places. It also has horses, which are used in therapy sessions with the pupils.

Autism can vary widely in its severity. Rico's brother, Lucas, is also on the autistic spectrum but goes to the mainstream Exminster Community Primary School, where his mother says he is extremely happy.

Devon County Council was approached by the Echo on Wednesday last week, but has so far not provided a comment on the case.