Mathew Haslam (14) from Moorends, who has Asperger's syndrome, also missed out on hundreds of hours of education after council bosses failed to make full-time school provision available until ordered by a High Court judicial review.

The teenager, who was excluded from Rossington Hall Special School in early December 2007, had to wait over four months until he could return to education.

Only then did he receive 14 hours-per-week tuition despite Doncaster Council having a legal obligation to provide alternative provision for Mathew within six days.

When council officers told his furious parents Brenda and John there was no money available to provide Mathew with a school place, the pair launched a legal case against the authority to fund his education at the £155,000-a-year Barton School in Barton-on-Humber, North Lincolnshire - the nearest suitable establishment.

The judicial review found Doncaster Council had breached the Education Act 1996 in failing to give Mathew an education and ordered the authority to pay the fees as well as the Haslam's legal costs.

Mathew finally took up his place at the residential school shortly before the summer holidays started.

Said Mrs Haslam: "The council neglected his education and in doing so discriminated against his Aspergers.

"They had to provide for him but didn't think they had to follow the law. If we had taken him out of school the council would have fined us.

"Doncaster did not make any efforts to secure an alternative school place. I had to find the school place for Mathew."

Representing the Haslams, specialist education solicitor James Wilson said: "The law in relation to excluded pupils is crystal clear.

"Councils have a duty to make full-time education for all pupils from day six of a permanent exclusion.

"If Doncaster had taken urgent action to find a school place for Mathew in December 2007, it could probably have found a much cheaper place.

"However, because Doncaster did not take action, it had no choice but to accept when the school offered a place for over £150,000. There was no alternative and Doncaster had no time to negotiate."Doncaster Council's interim director of children's services, Paul Gray, said: "We do not comment on individual cases but can confirm we have worked with Mr and Mrs Haslam to identify a suitable school placement starting from September that can meet Mathew's needs."