Introduction
Most children and young people learn well with good teaching or a bit of extra help.
You can find out what help is available on our Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool page.
Sometimes, a child or young person might need more support. This is found by looking at what they need, making a plan, doing the plan, and checking how it’s going. This is called Assess, Plan, Do, Review, or APDR. If more help is needed, they might need extra help such as an Education, Health and Care Plan or a Medical Care Plan.
Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan)
An Education Health and Care Plan is for children and young people who need a lot of extra help because of their special educational needs or disability. This help is more than what schools usually give.
The school or educational setting should work with the child or young person and their family to ask for an Education, Health and Care needs assessment. They will use the information they’ve already gathered through their Graduated Response.
Parents or young people can also ask for an assessment themselves. You can read more about when and how to ask for an Education, Health and Care assessment and what happens next.
Medical Care Plan
A few children and young people have very serious medical needs. These needs can make school harder and need more help than schools usually give.
These children and young people will get support from health and education teams. They will help with checking, training, and making a care plan. It explains what medical help the child needs, what medicine they take, what to do in an emergency, and any changes needed for things like PE or school trips. Medical information can change, so it should be checked and updated regularly.