How do you know of you need an ehcp?

[Howdoiknowwhattodo]

DD has ASD and is under CAMHs for her anxiety. A big trigger for this is school though she masks this there so they don't see it at all. She is also struggling with school work and not doing well academically.

CAMHs has advised that she needs an EHCP, but school say it isn't needed/wait to see how the assess plan do review goes.

Who do I listen to and how do I tell if DD really needs one. I don't want to fall out with the school but don't want to let my DD down either.

CAMHS will not be willing to apply for one her. They will want the school to do it but without the full context of the wider school picture. Which is a bit like school telling CAMHS that she should be medicated. It may or may not be right but they are not really in a position to give that advice.

What school year is your daughter?

An EHCP is needed when a young person's needs can't be met by the support commonly available to them. They are a requirement if there is any risk of hospitalisation.

I would definitely listen to your CAMHS team and ask for the school to follow their advice. If they won't, you can write yourself to the local authority to request this.

As PP has said, its when they needs cannot be met adequately.. What school year is she as the process typically takes 20 weeks after the local authority has agreed to assess, which depending on staffing etc can take quite a while in itself. You can apply yourself and the local authority then ask school for their paperwork.

She is in year 7 so just started secondary.

Apply yourself.

I would apply for an EHCNA yourself. Schools often don’t think pupils need or will get an EHCP but parents go on to successfully apply themselves. If CAMHS are advising you to apply or are going to apply I would listen.

the process typically takes 20 weeks after the local authority has agreed to assess

The 20 weeks statutory timescale is from request to finalised EHCP. The LA don’t get 20 weeks after they have agreed to assess.

I'd contact your local authority Sendias for advice on the process and the SEN board here is full of knowledgeable people, if she does need it, best to get the ball rolling, local authorities do reject at the assessment stage so best to get advice.

Be careful with SENDIASS, some are good but too many repeat the LA’s unlawful policies. IPSEA and SOSSEN are better.

She needs an EHCP if she is struggling academically. Unfortunately, many schools interpret this as failing, not scraping a low pass even though she may have potential for high grades. You will have to fight to get one, and constantly fight to keep it once she is getting her needs met and her grades do go up.

She needs an EHCP if she is struggling academically.

It's not always about academics. Ds is academically able, has an EHCP and also attends a specialist placement, funded by our LA.

And definitely apply yourself. Don't wait for school to faff around saying it's not necessary.

Thanks for the responses they are food for thought. I think DD does need more support at school but not sure how that can best be given -you don't know what you don't know type thing.

I agree with @Punxsutawney that struggling academically isn’t only reason for an EHCP, I was more saying that since your DD is struggling academically the school have no reason to deny doing an EHCP for her as that is key reason they exist even if your DD is getting passing grades.

In terms of what support your DD needs, if you can save the money it is worth getting a full ASD assessment done by a private educational psychologist who specialises in ASD. A diagnosis alone can’t tell you what support she needs as ASD is so varied in presentation. So she needs an individual assessment to determine what support she needs for her ASD. I had one done for my DD (£1400 on credit card that I paid off £200/mo) and the psychologist wrote up support and accommodation needs in a report that then was given to both GP and school SENCO. It’s a roadmap they can then use when writing the EHCP.

The report is also worth it’s weight in gold, because if you change schools, or the school tries to take away the EHCP or argue that some accommodations should be dropped (as a result of grades improving which is very common), you have the report from a Dr stating she must have the support and accommodations full stop. You can hold your ground whereas if you let the school wildly guess what support and accommodations she needs, they have full authority to change it on you (and her) at any time. The education psychologists often are willing to be on call to write a letter to the schools on your DDs behalf if there is any nonsense going on like removing support or accommodations for very reasonable fee like £50. Which is invaluable. I’ve never had to get such a letter, usually meeting with the head and going over the original report and saying, you know I can get a letter dated today reiterating this….is enough to keep the support & accommodations in place.

Post-16 you usually have to get an adult assessment done but this then lasts for life and will have recommendations to both Uni and employers that your DD can use when leaving school and going to Uni or into work as an adult.

Just apply yourself

If you apply for an EHCP yourself, do you have to be resident in the LA that your child attends school in?

Follow the advice on IPSEA about how to apply for a needs assessment. No one can really say if you need an ehcp until after the assessment and thats the point of it.

You don’t need to know exactly what support DD needs now. If undertaken correctly an EHCNA will highlight DD’s needs and the provision she requires to meet those needs.

or the school tries to take away the EHCP

Schools cannot cease to maintain an EHCP.

if you let the school wildly guess what support and accommodations she needs, they have full authority to change it on you (and her) at any time.

If an EHCP is correctly written schools cannot remove or change provision “at anytime”, they have to provide the provision detailed, specified and quantified in F. Schools don’t need to guess at what SEP to provide, they must provide what is in the EHCP. Parents don’t need to pay an EP to write a letter if EHCP provision isn’t provided. They should email the Director of Children’s Services threatening JR, which often works, but if it doesn’t they need a pre-action letter (which an EP can’t write).

No you don’t. You apply to the LA where you live even if DC’s school is in another LA.

Following for a friend in similar circumstances

Thank you JustKeepBuilding

Ex-SENCO here.

CAMHS, Paediatrics and Occupational Therapy are all in my experience very quick to tell parents that a child needs an EHCP. Fundamentally there’s often a lack of understanding of both the process and the rationale for EHCPs. It feels sometimes that they think all children who are under an outside agency or have SEN should have one by default, and that isn’t the case. Most children with an ASD diagnosis won’t have one because their needs can be met with existing resources in school. If they need specialist provision (either a special school or a place in a Resource Base attached to a mainstream school) they will definitely need one; if they need TA support or other, more expensive provision in mainstream, they’ll need one. If not, it’s not as clear-cut.

There are two ways to apply - school can, or you can do a parental request (look at IPSEA for a model letter you can adapt). If you apply, the LA still asks school for their evidence, and this might be an issue if they can’t demonstrate that they are having to put substantial support in place and have reviewed this over time. It doesn’t mean she won’t get a Plan, but it makes it less likely.

What will change for her if she has a Plan? What do you envision it will mean in school? Maybe start with that and work backwards.

There are two ways to apply - school can, or you can do a parental request

Other professionals, including at CAMHS, can also request an EHCNA.

CAMHS, Paediatrics and Occupational Therapy are all in my experience very quick to tell parents that a child needs an EHCP. Fundamentally there’s often a lack of understanding of both the process and the rationale for EHCPs.

Schools are equally guilty of not understanding EHCPs and the law surrounding them.

Sorry, but I had different experience with my DD. I did initially try and get the school to do the EHCP, but after waiting for SIX YEARS, I went private. So no, emailing God and all his angels didn’t make a bit of a difference.

When we switched secondary schools due to a house move, the new school tried to take away her EHCP. I had to go in with the private assessment and raise hell to stop it.

Good friends of mine had the EHCP taken away from their ASD DD (friends with my DD) because the school said her grades were good enough that she did not really need the support outlined in it. She had no private assessment to fall back on and as it was weeks before GCSE exams had no choice but for her DD to take the exams with zero accommodations. And obviously the DD didn’t do as well as she should have (she did much better on mocks as she’d had accommodations). It scuppered her dreams to go to sixth form.

I think you are outlining how things are supposed to work, but ime that’s not what happened to myself and at least one other family.

I never in 15 years of SENCOing met a HCP who would do an EHCP referral request. They always passed it back to school.

Some schools don’t understand the process, but there are plenty of SENCOs who can quote the CoP chapter and verse, thanks. You’ve obviously had a difficult experience and I’m sorry for that, but I was on first-name terms with all my parents and in all the consultation requests I had, I only said I couldn’t meet need three times (all for children who needed special schools). My school had a really strong reputation for inclusivity so we were far above national average for SEN as a result. Don’t tar us all with the same brush.

Op unfortunately it's a little like the blind leading the blind here. Senco/school and local authority often don't understand the actual law around this.
Follow Michael Charles on Facebook he's a solicitor who fights for such children and what he comes up against is medieval quite frankly.

The systems is not really with you at school level it's against you, unless you are extremely lucky.

Many children get to 16,brhey have failed their GCSE they are not used to getting help and they have to re sit exams but can't accept help.
The ehfp is supposed to help level up your child with their learning issue.

If this other authority feels she needs one I wouldn't take that likely.
What many senco/teachers don't understand is that there are many barriers to learning,like anxiety etc....and having it expressly written in that perhaps she's needs small tweaking to help her learn...that will help her learn.

Senco here, this happens quite a lot where CAMHS recommend an Ehcp, it is really frustrating as it isn't that straight forward. The school will probably have threshold guidance which you can ask for a copy of, or your LA might gave it published on their local offer. If the school does think she will need an Ehcp then they will need evidence of assess, plan do review over a few terms to prove they have tried to meet needs through quality first teaching/ intervention. Children with ASD that mask in school are at a huge disadvantage as there is not often enough evidence for the school to use, feels like you are waiting for them to fall at least 2 years behind or eventually lose it completely when the anxiety gets overwhelming. The system really isn't fair for them or the parents that have to deal with the post school aftermath and trying to convince people that they are not lying! Have you heard of NEST, they are an organisation that supports parents/ children with neurodiversity.