To be awake and feeling tearful over SEND EHCP disaster

I got my mediation certificate in about 30 minutes from the call. I'd say personally I think you shouldn't mediate because time is running out to be honest.

Start drafting your appeal now, they take a lot of time and energy. Once you get your hearing date, if it is too late you can ask the tribunal for an expedited hearing.

Well done 👏👏👏

Just tell the mediator that mediation is not suitable due to it being a phase transfer and time being of the essence and get them to issue a certificate. I got mine very quickly.

Get your appeal application sent off and logged straight away once you get it through. Good luck with it all.

I work with a school who, after reviewing a child’s EHCP, told the LA that they couldn’t meet a child’s needs. They were basically told that the child would be coming to them and that they would have to find a way to meet need. The LA offered a higher rate of funding to help support this, but the school wasn’t given any choice.

Good news.

Don’t bother actively partaking in mediation. Just get the certificate and submit your appeal to SENDIST ASAP.

@InBitsandInTears just send the heavy weight letter because they have already breached the deadline and have five days to respond to the letter. Even then you still have to have the finalised EHCP before you can appeal. There will be lots of people applying to appeal now at all stages including those for 16+ provision so you want to get onto the Tribunal waiting list ASAP. The sooner that all happens the sooner you get a date (it should be expedited because it is a phase transfer, so make that it clear on any application that it is a phase transfer appeal). As it is your Tribunal date may not fall in time for the start of Year 7, we managed to get a date for August by doing the appeal on the papers after the LA delayed the process and the original hearing date which is a tactic they use sometimes. It could be September before your case is heard at this rate. You need to push it now to get the ball rolling, don't be afraid to go in heavy, sadly you have to show them you are serious otherwise they walk all over you.

Parents are being told their child needs a specialist place but there isn't one available.

These parents should appeal once they have the right of appeal.

For non-wholly independent schools, on its own being full is not enough of a reason to refuse to name parental preference. The LA has to prove the school is so full admitting DC is incompatible with the provision of efficient education for others &/or the efficient use of resources. The bar for this is higher than LAs and many schools admit. It has to be something tangible and specific and is more than an “adverse effect”, “impact on” or “prejudicial to”.

And if it is inappropriate for provision to be made in a school, there is EOTAS/EOTIS.

I don't have anything useful to add but I'm thinking of getting "I have made a lot of progress although not in a straight line" on a poster.

Hang in there, OP.

The LA would have to agree to an early review.

I am sorry to read this. I know she has health issues. She was recovering from some health procedure when she did our follow up.
I hope she's well on the road to recovery.

@DancingOctopus I believe she was unwell towards the end of last year.

I am not sure. We last saw her in June 2024. I sincerely hope that she is well and working.

@DancingOctopus is Jemma Levy back working and taking on new clients?

Copy your MP into your email asking for the final EHCP. It might help.
I don't know where you are but Jemma Levy is an EP based in North London. She's fantastic and her reports absolutely stand up in Tribunal.

Use the template letter on here. I used this successfully to get my DS's phase transfer EHCP sent to me when it was late so that I could appeal at Tribunal @InBitsandInTears. It tells you all the people to send it too on there, I found the emails for my LA by searching online and sent it by email so I had proof it was sent. Send the text in the body of the email, my LA tried to say they couldn't open the letter attachment I sent at first try.

www.ipsea.org.uk/letter-to-la-when-it-has-or-will-breach-the-deadline-for-reviewing-and-amending-the-ehc-plan-in-advance-of-a-phase-transfer-template-letter-12

Try an email warning them if you don't get the up to date version plus accompanying letter by Monday you will have to start judicial review proceedings. It might just push them into action on its own.

You should still go back to the LA (I would email the Director of Children’s Services) even if you don’t expect an answer. At this point, the intention isn’t necessarily to trigger action, although that would be helpful, it is about building a paper trial as evidence. You could also try emailing your LA’s Monitoring Officer if you haven’t already.

In order to appeal, you need the LA’s decision letter that gives you the right of appeal. It doesn’t sound like you have this. You should go back to the LA for the decision letter (and the secondary phase transfer EHCP). In the meantime, if you haven’t already, I would look for someone who has capacity to take your case for a pre-action letter.

SOS SEN do pre-action letters. They do charge, but much less than solicitors do.