parental ehcp declined, advice?

[BabyMarsh]

hi just had the decision of the ehcp outcome and it was declined to issue, my son has ebsa, autism, and adhd also selective mute, they said his needs can be met within the school even though they are not being met and he is struggling to attend and only going in at 11am most days because he is unable to attend. is it worth appealing i don’t know, 18 months appeal dates (so i’ve read) doesn’t seem worth appealing?

If definitely lodge an appeal immediately and also consider mediation. Send emails to your caseworker with the head of sen CC in. You have to make your voice heard and be very persistent. Good luck

thank you, is meditation worth it or should i go straight to tribunal? i’ve heard a few people say it’s a delay tactic, it’s a parental request so i do not have the support of the school

couple of things - in my county of Surrey refusal to issue is very common. It feels like a test to feed out parents who won’t fight. I skipped mediation as it would just put a delay in the process.

i am curious though why the senco isn’t helping or supporting?

Have you looked on IPSEA for advice? Looks like your DC has lots of needs that should be explored in terms of provision.

https://www.ipsea.org.uk/refusal-to-assess-appeals

Of those who go to tribunal, parents are over 95 percent successful, so keep fighting! For us mediation just allowed them to delay decisions further, as they reassessed and still said no

As soon as we had a tribunal date, the council agreed to progress - with no new information!

they just feel he does not need any extra support than currently receiving

no thank you i will take a look now

Definitely appeal. It might seem a long way off but n 18months you will be glad you did

that’s interesting. they can reassess? even the EP said he didn’t think the provision could be met within the school so i’m surprised it was declined but money i guess

Definitely appeal, even with the wait. We've been through the SEN maze with our little one and the thing I wish I'd known earlier is that a refusal to issue isn't really the end of it, it's almost the starting point. Councils turn down a lot of these first time round and then concede once it gets closer to tribunal.

The 11am starts are exactly the kind of thing to keep a record of. If the school says his needs can be met there but he's only managing to get in at 11 most days, those two things don't add up. A dated log of attendance, what support was actually put in place and what happened each day is really useful evidence.

Don't let the 18 months put you off either. A lot of cases settle or get conceded well before a hearing, and in the meantime you've got the appeal lodged and the clock ticking rather than starting from scratch later. The IPSEA advice others mentioned is a good place to start for the wording.

It is exhausting though, especially when you're the one chasing everything while also just trying to get him through the school day. Hope it goes your way.

Appeal.
My appeal failed BUT the chap in charge spoke very sternly to the school SENCO during the meeting as they didn't have much evidence of support. I left it there, totally fed up with the whole thing.
Six months later the school made an appointment with an amazing Ed Psychologist to get the ball rolling for an EHCP. Was all sorted and EHCP issued within five months with very little input from me.

I think they thought I was going to sue them so they decided to sort an EHCP sharpish.

Definitely appeal.

Start to think about what evidence you have, what you can get from people already involved and if you need any independent assessments.

If DS is not in school full time, you can request an expedited hearing.

In the meantime, if DS can’t attend school full-time you can request alternative provison.

Did the EP put that in writing? If so then I'd say you've got a good chance at appeal. What is the actual outcome you are looking for though - 1:1 in mainstream, or a move to a specialist setting?

We had very good success with mediation, but not for refusal to issue the EHCP. Ours was because we appealed the content (Sections B and F). The school SENCO was on on board and joined the mediation session though.

no he did not because i told he we want the school and want him to stay there

my son said he doesn’t want me to appeal

wanted the autism unit within the mainstream school

DS is a child. I would be making the decision whether to appeal or not (and I would be appealing) rather than letting DS make it.

Yeah I know he just said he will be in year 10 by then so no point

There is still a point. IMO it is still worth it.

One of the reasons they said he isn’t behind academically

Year 10 is a very important time to have appropriate support. It will allow him to achevie the highest qualifications possible.

But the support needs to be in place before year 10 really that might be too late by then :( he doesn’t go into school till 11am he is missing so much of his education

Academically able DC can have EHCPs.

Well, yes. But having it in year 10 is better than never having it. So you should appeal

thank you i’m going to appeal, i get calls home all the time because he is hiding in the school too anxious to go to lessons, teachers say he can’t follow instructions, i’m really annoyed they declined him, should i just go straight to tribunal rather than mediation? i’m guessing it’s not overturned much at mediation?