My child's ehcp hasnt been updated since 2021.

[AzkabanWitch]

What on earth do I do?

Do you have any new evidence to add (including only semi-formal things like observations from school via the SENCO?).
Have needs changed in your opinion, and are the targets being met/worked towards in a way that is satisfactory to your child (ie: are they making progress and OK)?
If nothing has changed then they review it by saying "seems fine" and that is it until next year, you need to make it very clear if you think there needs to be an amendment (or something like going to KS3 should trigger a closer look at what that might involve).

In my LA they state quite openly that they will only amend at school transfer points (Y6 to 7 and then Y11 to whatever next). They do amend if change of placement is agreed in between. I have a pupil in Y5 whose EHCP has not been amended since it was written in Y1.

I'm surprised to hear EHCPs aren't amended every year, my sons has been even if it's minor tweaks.

My sons has never been officially ended. Seems LAs are very lax as they don't have the staff. Review over a year ago, no help or support...no new plan. Abandoned. Age 19 no GCSEs or work experience. If you want anything done you have to shout. Email the LA if unhappy about lack of review..cc in head of education for your La. That might get things done

@WASZPy they are not following correct practice. The LA don't have to amend plan but it must be reviewed and if necessary altered to needs. Stating they only amend at transition is against code of practice and would be seen in dim light at a tribunal.

In my LA they state quite openly that they will only amend at school transfer points

@WASZPy they aren’t the only LA who try to get away with this, but having such a blanket policy is unlawful.

@Flanjango if the LA is ignoring you, have you threatened judicial review? If that hasn’t work have you sent a pre-action letter?

Your EHC should be reviewed each year whether anything has changed or not. I would put in a stage 1 complaint to the LA and if that isn't successful then a Stage 2 complaint, mediation and then tribunal. Check your LA's complaints policy on the Local Offer page.

From the IPSEA website:
If your child has, or you as a young person have, an EHC plan, your local authority (LA) must review it at least once a year. This is to make sure it stays up-to-date and continues to provide the support needed.
At the end of the review, there are only three decisions your LA can make:

1. To maintain the EHC plan as it is (not make any changes)
2. To change the EHC plan (and say what changes it is proposing), or
3. To cease the EHC plan if it thinks it is no longer necessary for it to be in place, following consultation.

You can appeal all three decisions in the SEND Tribunal. You will also have the right to mediation. When making your appeal you can try to get changes made to the EHC plan, even if your LA decided not to make any changes to the EHC plan. You will have the right to mediation/appeal when your LA:

• writes to tell you the EHC plan is being maintained without changes, or your LA plans to stop it, or
• sends to you the final amended EHC plan, if the decision made by the LA was to the amend the EHC plan.

If your child is, or you are, coming up to a phase transfer (for example, moving from primary school to secondary school, or secondary school to post-16 education), your LA must carry out the review well in advance of the move.

Full details are on the IPSEA website

Reading the thread back my post yesterday at 20:13 should have said they don’t have to like I had already posted in my second post, not they do have to.

Yes it should be done every year. But thanks to chronic underfunding since 2010 it has been getting worse and worse.
The tories are to self indulgent to tackle education for the masses.

That’s vanishingly rare - especially nowadays when there’s a backlog dating back to at least 2020 😢

What amendments do you want to see OP?

he needs specialist.

Has your DSs school held annual review meetings with you every year? What specialists do you think he needs?

@flanjango - I can recommend a brill GCSE Home Ed for GCSE English, Maths and Biology x

he is in a world of his own. His fave toys are 2 spiderman lego toys. He can write his first name. He's not continent. He's not achieved. He's not engaging with others.

He won't leave home willingly. He's miserable at school.

Sections B, F and I

You have t answered my question - has he had annual reviews? Also, is he in a special school?

yes AR

Mainstream

zero progress

If you disagreed with no amendments being made following the last AR, did you appeal?

Bit previous to instruct a solicitor. Have you been to sendiass locally? Called the EHCP coordinator for your son's echp? Requested an emergency review? And at emergency review requested a change of provision?

EHCP was originally started in 2017 by her mum and myself , sadly her mum passed away shortly after this when she was only 5 yrs old ,she was at primary school and moved to out catchment school nearby a couple of years later hoping to get better support and force update of EHCP which was causing conflict from school and home !! Anyway she is now 13 as is still regularly asked when attending hospital clinics where her mum lives ?!!! Luckily she isn’t easily offended after years of adults twisting the narrative and game playing by support staff every year the same mind games play out like a broken record obviously to meet the boxes originally ticked randomly by school staff to get their own way with what need was or wasn’t !! Her mums death plays a massive role in what her care should be at school due to the genetic diagnosis that came after her mums death , the way her mum was treated by school and local authority sharing safeguarding data and using it against her and us when making a complaint over her mums failed care and lack of diagnosis ! Well to put a fine point on this there have been several changes over the years that prevent the ability to go back and change what was put in this legal document at the beginning and it has lay as a permanent marker of how her mum was treated but the local authority and its old boys school network of shared gossip will clearly be revealed in any updated version so there is why I believe this has been dodged by two other schools !! Dangerous is word I use to point out it lacks the protection that her diagnosis should give and along with that the lack of adoptive medical care that forms the H (health ) part of this document . Tbh it’s not as simple as a lazy admin or a failed Senco and definitely not down to lack of parental interest but down to shameful past and failed parental support at a time it was needed most !!