Introduction
Most children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities will have their needs met in local mainstream early years settings, schools or colleges with support. This is called SEN support and is offered as part of the school’s own provision. Somerset’s Gradual Response Tool provides information on how education settings can provide this support.
But sometimes, this support is not enough. If a child or young person needs more help than the school can give through their usual support, it might be time to ask for an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment. This is the first step to see if an EHC plan is needed.
Evidencing the need
To make a strong request, education settings show why an assessment is needed by sharing:
- the support already tried
- use of the Assess, Plan, Do, Review (APDR) cycle several times
- what hasn’t worked well over time
There is a checklist to help schools make a clear request. It was made by a group including SENCos, advisory services, and Somerset Parent Carer Forum.
Having a diagnosis or health or care need does not always mean an EHC plan is needed. A request is right when the child or young person cannot access education properly because of those needs and requires more help than the school can give through SEN support.
Timing of requests
The timeframe for the Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment process is set out in the Government’s SEND Code of Practice. This process does not stop during the school holidays.
While a request for an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment can be made at any time, it is important to consider the date you make the request as this can have an impact, including:
- During school holidays, it may be harder to arrange meetings or assessments
- Professionals (like Educational Psychologists) may not be able to visit the school
- Schools or families may not receive or reply to letters or emails, which could affect decisions
- If a child is changing schools, there may not be enough time to plan the move
To allow us to provide the best possible assessment and outcomes, the timing of a request is crucial. Potential impacts of making a request in April, June and July include:
- April – consultations are likely to be sent to schools over the summer holidays
- June or July – the six-week assessment period will take place during school summer holidays which means professionals (including Educational Psychologists) will be unable to visit pupils in school settings
Where schools are making the request, all Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment requests should be discussed with your link Educational Psychologist during annual planning meetings. We encourage parent carers and young people to work with their school when making a request.