01
What is SEN support?
Most children and young people with special educational needs have them met by their nursery, school or college through SEN support: help that is additional to, or different from, what is available to every learner. A child doesn’t need to be falling behind academically to receive it.
Settings use a cycle called the graduated approach: assess the learner’s needs, plan the support, do it, and review the difference it has made. Many areas record this in a support plan; in Essex, for example, this is known as One Planning.
If you’re worried, start by talking to the school’s special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCo) about the support in place, how your child is progressing and what happens next.
Communication and interactionCognition and learningSocial, emotional and mental healthSensory and/or physical needs
The SEND Code of Practice describes these four broad areas of need.
02
EHC needs assessments and EHC plans
If a child or young person still isn’t making the expected progress despite the support available, or the setting isn’t sure how to meet their needs, an education, health and care (EHC) needs assessment may be the next step. A parent, the school or setting, or a young person aged 16 to 25 can ask the local authority to carry one out.
An EHC plan (EHCP) is a legal document describing a child or young person’s needs, the outcomes they’re working towards and the provision they must receive. The law sets out timescales for the process:
- Up to 6 weeksThe local authority decides whether to carry out an assessment.
- Up to 16 weeksIf it decides a plan isn’t needed, it must tell you by this point and explain your right to appeal.
- Draft planYou have 15 days to comment on a draft plan and say which school or college you’d like named.
- Up to 20 weeksThe final EHC plan should be issued within 20 weeks of the request.
If you disagree with a decision, you can usually appeal to the SEND Tribunal. Time limits apply, normally two months from the decision letter or one month from a mediation certificate if that’s later, so get impartial advice early.
03
Annual reviews
An EHC plan must be reviewed at least every 12 months, and local authorities should consider reviewing plans for children under five every three to six months. The review looks at progress towards outcomes and whether the plan still describes the child’s needs and provision accurately.
- The views of the child, their parents or the young person must be taken into account.
- You can ask for an early review if needs have changed, the provision isn’t working, there are repeated suspensions or an exclusion, or attendance has become a concern.
- Within four weeks of the review meeting, the local authority must tell you whether it will keep, amend or cease the plan.
- When a child moves from primary to secondary school, the plan must be reviewed and amended by 15 February in the year of transfer.
- From Year 9, reviews should include preparing for adulthood: further learning, employment, independent living, health and taking part in the community.
04
When a child can’t attend school
Some children can’t attend school because of illness, anxiety, exclusion or the lack of a suitable place. The law provides different routes, depending on the circumstances.
Section 19 (EOTAS)
Local authorities must arrange suitable education for children of compulsory school age who can’t attend school because of illness, exclusion or other reasons. It should be full-time unless that isn’t in the child’s best interests for health reasons, and is usually temporary.
EOTIS (Section 61)
Where a child has an EHC plan and the local authority agrees a school or college would be inappropriate, provision can be arranged elsewhere. It is set out in Section F of the plan, and the local authority remains responsible for securing it.
Emotionally based school avoidance
When anxiety makes attending school very difficult, early support matters. Ask the school for a meeting to agree a plan, which might include a trusted adult, a quiet space or timetable adjustments. If needs remain unmet, an EHC needs assessment may be appropriate.
Exclusions
For the first five school days of an exclusion, the school should set and mark work. From the sixth day, full-time education must be arranged by the school for a suspension or by the local authority for a permanent exclusion. More on exclusions.
Home education
Choosing to home educate is different from local authority provision. If your child has an EHCP and you home educate, the local authority no longer has to secure the provision in the plan. More on home education.
Reduced timetables
Part-time timetables should only be used in exceptional circumstances, for a short time and as part of a plan to return to full-time education. They should not be used to manage behaviour.
Read the government’s guidance on education for children with health needs (opens in a new tab) for more about local authority duties.
05
Free, impartial advice
Every local authority in England has a SEND information, advice and support service (SENDIASS). These services are free, confidential and impartial, and support children and young people aged 0 to 25 and their parents and carers.
Universal Childcare is an independent education provider. We are not part of, or endorsed by, the organisations linked on this page. This is general information about the law in England, not legal advice, and was last reviewed in October 2026. The information is based on the SEND Code of Practice (opens in a new tab) and related legislation.
