EHC plans in England: who can request an assessment and how long the council has

When ordinary SEN support at school is not enough, the next step is an education, health and care plan — an EHC plan. It is a formal document that records a child's educational, health and social needs and sets out exactly what support must be provided. Here is the process as set out on GOV.UK: who can ask for an assessment, how many weeks the local authority has to answer, and what to do if it refuses.

Who is an EHC plan for?

The plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than SEN support at a school or college provides. SEN support itself is help inside the institution: speech therapy, working in a smaller group, an extra adult in class, help with communication or with physical and personal care difficulties. An EHC plan is the next level, for more complex needs.

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This procedure is for England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland work differently.

Who can request an assessment?

The request goes to the local authority. A parent can ask; a young person can ask for themselves if they are aged 16 to 25; and so can anyone who thinks an assessment may be necessary — a doctor, health visitor, teacher, relative or family friend. That matters: you do not have to wait for the school to start the process.

Before requesting, it is worth speaking to the SENCO, the special educational needs co-ordinator at the school or nursery. If the child does not attend one, contact the council directly. Your local Information, Advice and Support (IAS) Service gives free advice.

What documents will they ask for?

If the authority decides to carry out an assessment, you may be asked for reports from your child's school, nursery or childminder, doctors' assessments, and a letter from you about your child's needs. That letter is not a formality: it is where a parent explains in their own words what is not working in the current support.

How many weeks does the council have?

Two deadlines are worth marking in a calendar:

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16 weeks — the local authority must tell you within this time whether an EHC plan is going to be made for your child.

20 weeks from the date they receive the request for the assessment — by then they must give you the final EHC plan.

In between, the council prepares a draft plan and sends you a copy. You have at least 15 days to comment. That is also the window for asking that your child attends a specialist needs school or specialist college, so it cannot be left until later.

What if they say no?

Four kinds of decision can be challenged: a refusal to carry out an assessment; a refusal to create a plan after an assessment; the special educational support set out in the plan; and the school named in it. Appeals are heard by the SEND Tribunal — the First-tier Tribunal for Special Educational Needs and Disability. It also handles complaints about disability discrimination by a school or local authority, and it can make recommendations on health and social care issues.

The parts of the plan open to appeal are the education sections — B, F and I. The tribunal also hears appeals against a decision that a child no longer needs a plan.

Why do you need a mediation certificate?

In most cases you must consider mediation before appealing to the tribunal — an attempt to settle with an impartial mediator. Contact details for the mediation service are in the council's decision letter; if you do not have the letter, the council will supply them.

The detail that costs families time: even if you do not want mediation, you still have to contact the service and obtain a mediation certificate. Without one you will have to explain to the tribunal why it is missing. There is one exception: if your appeal is only about which school or institution is named (Section I), mediation does not have to be considered.

The deadline for lodging an appeal is stated in the council's decision letter — go by that letter rather than by general information online.

Where can you get free help?

Free advice comes from IPSEA (Independent Parental Special Education Advice) and from your local service in the Information, Advice and Support Services network. It is also worth checking whether you qualify for legal aid. Tribunal contacts: send@justice.gov.uk, telephone 0300 303 5857, address 1st Floor, Darlington Magistrates Court, Parkgate, Darlington DL1 1RU.

What else does a plan give you?

If your child has an EHC plan, or you have been told they need one, you can ask for a personal budget — a say in how the money allocated for support is spent.

For children under five, support starts before any plan: a written progress check at age two, a health visitor check between two and three, and a written assessment in the summer term of the first year of primary school. Nurseries and childminders registered with Ofsted follow the EYFS framework, which also provides for children with SEND. If your child is 16 or over and heading to college, contact the college before they start to make sure it can meet their needs.