Education, Health and Care Plans
Requesting an EHC needs assessment
Statutory assessment of a child or young person's education, health and care needs can be requested by:
-
the child's parent
-
the young person (16-25)
- a person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution (with the agreement of the parent or young person)
Other professionals can also bring a child or young person who has or may have SEN to the attention of the local authority if they think an EHC needs assessment may be necessary (with the agreement of the parent or young person).
How to request statutory assessment
If you think your child may need an EHC needs assessment we advise that you speak to your child's school, nursery or college. The decision to assess or not is evidence based, so information about education is important. However, sometimes you might want to make a parental request for an EHC needs assessment. This is done by contacting the local authority.
In Swindon this can be done through the SEND portal which updates parents at every step of the way.
The decision whether to assess or not is evidence based, so we advise that you include any information or reports that you have with your request.
We have a template that you can use to help you make a request. This can be attached to your request through the SEND portal, or if you prefer to email sent to SENAT@Swindon.gov.uk.
The legal test
If a local authority (LA) is requested to carry out an EHC needs assessment by a parent, young person, school or college they must consider:
- whether the child or young person has or may have special educational needs (SEN) and
- whether they may need special educational provision to be made through an EHC plan
If the answer to both of these questions is yes, the LA must carry out an EHC needs assessment.