Weeks 1-6
The 20-week timescales start at the point that the request is received by the EHC Casework Team (must include parental or young person consent). The information included within the request will be considered by a panel of practitioners from across education, health and care and a decision made about whether it is necessary to undertake an EHC needs assessment. The LA will inform you of the outcome of the panel by week 6 in writing and may be followed up by a telephone call.
If an assessment is agreed, you will be allocated an EHC coordinator who will contact you to discuss the assessment. Your coordinator will talk to you about what to expect from the process, will ask some questions that help explore your child or young person's or your needs and difficulties, and will discuss with your which agencies are currently involved with you/your child or young person and the family as they will be asked to contribute to the assessment.
If you/ your child or young person has complex health needs and is seen by a specialist, it is important that you share these details. Your coordinator will review the information that you and the education setting have already provided to ensure that we contact the right services. Your coordinator will also discuss your / your child or young person's longer-term aspirations and what outcomes will be important for them to achieve as it is crucial that both your and your child's voice is clearly evident.
If an assessment is not agreed the EHC team will send you formal confirmation of this via a letter which will also detail the reasons for not undertaking the statutory assessment. The EHC team may also offer a meeting to discuss the decision and next steps. The letter will also provide you with information about how you can appeal this decision.
KIDS SEND Mediation Service offers a free mediation and disagreement resolution service that is an independent service of the local authority.
Contact a mediation advisor at KIDS:
Weeks 6 to 14:
The EHC team will seek advice from parent/carers and agencies identified as being involved with you / your child or young person. This will include medical advice from healthcare professionals; educational advice; psychological advice from an educational psychologist (EP); advice and information in relation to social care and Early Help services; advice and information from any other agency that the EHC Team thinks is appropriate and any agency that you as a young person or as the parent/carers of a child reasonably request that the LA seek advice from. These agencies have up to 6 weeks to submit their advice to the EHC Casework team.
Weeks 14 to 16:
The EHC Team will consider all the advice received as part of the assessment and will decide about whether an EHC Plan is required. This decision is made via a multi-agency meeting with representation across education, health, and care partners. Your Coordinator will formally write to you to inform you of the decision by Week 16 or will contact you to notify you of any delay.
If it is decided that it is not necessary to prepare an EHC plan, your coordinator will offer to speak with you to explain the decision and discuss next steps. You will be provided with a summary of the assessment and the advice that contributed to the assessment. You will receive formal confirmation of this decision in a letter which will provide you with information about how you can appeal this decision. If you disagree with the decision, you have two months to appeal to the SEND tribunal. The SEND service will explain how you can appeal and give you information about the mediation process. Again you can contact KIDS SEND Mediation Service
Weeks 16 to 19
Where the EHC Panel have decided an EHC plan is required the draft EHC plan will be issued to you. The EHC coordinator will contact you to explain the content of the EHC plan as well as your preference regarding the education setting to be named in Section I of the final EHC plan.
Coproduction meetings will be offered to provide the opportunity to discuss the draft plan with all professionals involved and so you can request any changes based on the assessment advice, that you would like to be made to the EHC plan before the final plan is issued. You have 15 days to respond once the draft is issued.
The EHC Team will consult with your preferred education setting and may also consult with other settings that may be suitable. The education settings should respond within 15 days to consider the request for placement and determine whether they are able to put in place the provision that has been identified in Section F of the EHC plan.
The EHC Team will consult with your preferred education setting and may also consult with other settings that may be suitable. The education settings should respond within 15 days to consider the request for placement and determine whether they are able to put in place the provision that has been identified in Section F of the EHC plan. If a specialist setting is the most suitable setting and is your preference, the Coordinator will refer the case to the SEN panel where professionals will review and make a final decision. Not all independent education settings are approved by DfE (approved educations are listed on the Section 41 here: Independent special schools and post-16 institutions - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)) .
If your preference is for one of these settings the EHC Team will consult with them but does not have the same ability to name them if they do think they are a suitable education setting for you / your child or young person.
Weeks 19 to 20
The final EHC Plan will be issued with different sections giving the education needs of the child / young person, the health and social care needs, as well as naming a suitable educational placement in Section I of the EHC plan. If you do not agree with the education setting that has been named in the EHC plan, the accompanying letter will provide you with information about how you can appeal this decision.