Statement/EHCplans

[Littlemisssunshine72]

Just had my son's AR (home educated ,has a statement for his autism).
All going well,them being complimentary, then talk turned to the EHC plans. Was told DS wouldn't go on one this year, then started talking about them and LA bod said not all children with a statement will go on one as if the child's needs can be met by the £6000 the school now gets won't get a plan. So asked how it affects home ed kids. She didn't know but said could always apply for SA again. I said so basically would have to send my son to school to prove he needs extra funds in order to keep his statement so he could go to college or secondary school.
She said his statement wouldn't be relevant then anyway as his needs would have changed. I said his needs would be kept up to date with the annual review. She said she would ask and report back to me.
Just wondering if anyone on here has any more information on how you can prove you need to keep the statement/EHC plan while home edding and obviously meeting your child's needs.
Thank you (will post in special needs too)

[streakybacon]

Ds has a statement (obtained whilst home educating) which is currently being converted to EHC. My LA is a pathfinder so we're in the final stages (it has taken forever).

Because he is nearly sixteen and in his final year before college, we'll be having another review before the summer to update his needs and provision so that it can match with college learning support. It's awkward at the moment, because for now we need the flexibility of HE but from next September we will need more rigidity to ensure his needs are met through college.

LAs have been issued with a timetable for when to convert from statements to EHC. The first to be changed will be those at transition periods. You're right that needs would be kept up to date by the annual review. You'd certainly be at a transition point when your son is preparing for college so that would trigger conversion to EHC.

[FionaJNicholson]

Hi

There's a timetable for when LAs have to do the transition reviews from statements to EHCPs and hardly any of them HAVE to be done this year. Your local authority should publish details of when children are going to be moved on to the plans.

The Government has said that children with statement should get plans as the eligibility criteria will be the same.

Personally, I think they won't dare knock children OFF statements as there would be an outcry at something clearly being taken away. What I think they will do instead is drastically to reduce the number of NEW plans they agree.

There IS an issue in my opinion with the different grounds for ceasing statements and plans, and once he got a plan, the LA might conceivably say "we aren't giving you anything [ie because he is home ed] so he doesn't need a plan" then you might have to be geared up to argue about this and maybe even take it to tribunal. (I've raised it as a hypothetical with DfE who don't see that it will arise btw, so lets wait and see... )

I have loads more information on my websites edyourself, ehe-sen, and snafu2 but I'm not allowed to post links, because that would be self-promotion

[Littlemisssunshine72]

Thank you

[onlyme2014]

Hi Littlemisssunshine, I think they're giving you incorrect info. As far as I'm aware everyone with a current statement will automatically be given an EHC Plan and statements are legally valid until 2018. Have a look at IPSEA's resources: www.ipsea.org.uk/what-you-need-to-know/transition

HTH

[FionaJNicholson]

Hi, the statement is only legally valid until the switch to the EHCP, whenever the LA decides to do that.

It's not up to the parent to insist on keeping the statement.

The Govnt has been quite slippery about existing statement holders getting plans, they've said the criteria are the same and they wouldn't expect anyone to lose out, but there does have to be an EHC needs assessment, they don't just switch them automatically, so theoretically an LA could argue that not starting a plan is the equivalent to ceasing a statement ie the grounds are not met.

Although as I said before, it's not the existing statement holders who will see the cuts, it's the children and young people applying for new assessments from scratch now.