Special Educational Needs & Disability (SEND) Law
EHC needs assessments and plans, statutory timescales, SEND Tribunal appeals, and mediation for children and young people aged up to 25.
Introduction
SEND law gives children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than ordinary special educational needs provision a route to an education, health and care (EHC) plan — a legal document identifying educational, health and social needs and the additional support required to meet them. The framework is Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014: a parent, the young person, or a school can request an EHC needs assessment from the local authority (s.36), strict timescales govern the process (the authority must say within 16 weeks whether a plan will be made, and the final plan is due within 20 weeks of the request), and disagreements go to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) after contact with a mediation adviser. Appeals must be lodged within 2 months of the decision letter or 1 month of the mediation certificate, whichever is later.
In Brief
An EHC plan is for children and young people up to 25 who need more support than SEN support provides. A parent, the young person or the school can request an EHC needs assessment; the local authority must say within 16 weeks whether it will make a plan and deliver the final plan within 20 weeks of the request. Challenge refusals or plan contents in the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) — contact a mediation adviser first unless the appeal is only about the named school — within 2 months of the decision letter or 1 month of the mediation certificate, whichever is later.
Core Principles
Who EHC Plans Are For — An education, health and care (EHC) plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support; plans identify educational, health and social needs and set out the additional support to meet those needs (GOV.UK).
Requesting an Assessment — A request for a local authority in England to secure an EHC needs assessment may be made by the child's parent, the young person, or a person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution (Children and Families Act 2014, s.36(1)).
The Assessment Question — The authority must determine whether it may be necessary for special educational provision to be made in accordance with an EHC plan, and must consult the child's parent or the young person in making that determination (CFA 2014, s.36(3)-(4)).
Statutory Timescales — The local authority must tell you within 16 weeks whether an EHC plan is going to be made, and has a maximum of 20 weeks from the date it receives the assessment request to give you the final EHC plan.
Mediation First — Before most appeals you must contact a mediation adviser; mediation is confidential and free to parents. The exception: you do not need to consider mediation if your appeal is only about which school or institution is named (Section I of the plan).
Tribunal Appeals — Refusals to assess, refusals to issue a plan, and the contents of a plan can be appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) within 2 months of the decision letter or 1 month from the mediation certificate, whichever is later.
What Is 'Educational' — Provision that educates or trains (including therapies like speech and language therapy) belongs in the educational sections of a plan and is legally enforceable against the local authority (Bromley LBC v SENT [1999] ELR 260); lack of resources does not excuse non-performance of the statutory duty (R v East Sussex CC, ex parte Tandy [1998] AC 714).
Disability Discrimination at School — Schools must not discriminate against disabled pupils and owe reasonable adjustment duties under the Equality Act 2010; such claims also go to the SEND Tribunal.
Key Statutes
Leading Cases
Bromley LBC v Special Educational Needs Tribunal
[1999] ELR 260
R v East Sussex County Council, ex parte Tandy
[1998] AC 714
Common Scenarios
School support is not enough
A parent (or the young person, or the school) writes to the local authority requesting an EHC needs assessment under s.36 CFA 2014, attaching evidence such as reports and doctors' assessments and a letter about the child's needs. The authority must tell you within 16 weeks whether a plan will be made, and any final plan is due within 20 weeks of the request.
Local authority refuses to assess
Contact a mediation adviser (the refusal letter gives details of the mediation service), then appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) within 2 months of the date on the decision letter or 1 month from the mediation certificate, whichever is later. The tribunal is free and free specialist help is available from IPSEA and local services.
Plan names the wrong school
An appeal only about which school or institution is named in Section I of the EHC plan does not require you to consider mediation first — you still need a mediation certificate route only for other disputes. Appeal Section I to the SEND Tribunal within the standard deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can ask for an EHC needs assessment?
The child's parent, the young person themselves, or a person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution can request one from the local authority in England (CFA 2014, s.36(1)). Send evidence with the request — school reports, doctors' assessments, and a letter about the child's needs.
How long does the EHC process take?
The local authority will tell you within 16 weeks whether an EHC plan is going to be made for your child, and it has a maximum of 20 weeks from the date it receives the assessment request to give you the final EHC plan.
How do I challenge a SEND decision?
Contact a mediation adviser first (unless your appeal is only about the school named in Section I), then appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) within 2 months of the date on the decision letter or 1 month from the date of the mediation certificate — whichever is later. You can appeal a refusal to assess, a refusal to issue a plan, or the plan's contents.
Does appealing cost money?
The SEND Tribunal charges no fee, mediation is provided free to parents and young people, and free specialist advice is available from IPSEA and local parent services. Optional private costs — such as an independent educational psychologist's report — typically run to several hundred pounds.
Important Deadlines
Typical Costs
Official Resources
What To Do Next
Step-by-Step Guides
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