EHC Plan or Statement

[LaydeeC]

My son has a Statement (for last 6 or 7 years). Aspergers.
Our LEA has advised that, as he is changing back from a specialist school to a mainstream, and this was agreed around June this year, they are still deciding if it will be an EHC plan or an amendment to his statement.
Because my son already had a statement which I was familiar with, I haven't kept abreast of what the changes actually are.

I can't believe, however, that anything this coalition has introduced will advantage my son rather than dilute his rights.

Would you insist it is a continued statement or a move to the new system?

As far as I am aware all existing statements will be changed to EHCPs over the next 3 years.

I have heard positives and negatives about them.

You might get some more experienced posters on the SN children board.

I think if they're amending at this stage they don't have a choice, it has to ben an EHC Plan. But that means they have to do a full education,health and care assessment first. In theory you should be no worse off, but it's all unknown territory.

The Code states that any child who is eligible for a Statement should not have this provision limited by converting to an EHC Plan.

I've done a few conversions now. They involve up to date reports from professionals involved but none have had their provision reduced.

It means he will have support until he is 25 and in my experience of transferring statements to EHC plans, the focus is more on outcomes for the child's life, rather than a set of academic objectives, which I quite like.

The wording is quite important as where I teach the team in charge are looking to reduce hours where they can.
I can email you a link to my local sen page if you would like as it has some info about EHC plans on.

Hi, I have a SEN child with a Statement and has been told it is going to be changed to EHC which I understand is limited in words, key points only. I should be grateful if you could post the link that you mentioned.

Thanks

Have pm'd you

Hi, my son is in Y5 and about to transition from statement to EHC. I've heard that all children should have their statements converted as long as their needs haven't changed. Does anyone have any anecdotal reports on whether this is happening of whether children who are borderline with their statements are being bumped out of the system? I'm nervous that we'll lose out on an EHC plan.
If you've been through the transition process, I'd be really interested to know what it was like.
Thanks

Just done EHC conversion today for my DS2. He has been statemented since 3 (autism) and attends special school. We read and adjusted the statement- took about an hour to do in total

That sounds reassuring - not far different from an annual review?

Oh dear this kind of thread makes my heart sink. This is the biggest change in legislation relating to SEN for over thirty years but the message is clearly not getting across to the people who really need to know about it. Education Health and Care assessments and plans are much more personalised and focused on outcomes than statements. Children/young people and their parents should be closely involved at all stages and have a say in what goes into the plan. No child or young person should lose their statement as a result of changing to the new system unless their needs have changed and they no longer require high levels of support. All LAs are required by law to publish a timetable for converting statements to plans on their websites under their Local Offer, which sets out all details of services available in their area and beyond. The only pupils whose statements have to be converted in the current academic year are those moving into further education, training or apprenticeship. LAs can do other groups in accordance with the published timetable if they have sufficient resources to do it properly. All statements must have been transferred by April 2018. There is a legally defined process for carrying out individual conversions. The LA has to carry out an EHC assessment but need not seek new advice if you agree the current advice is sufficiently up to date Check the IPSEA website for detailed information. You should be informed about Independent Supporters who can support you through the EHC assessment process whether your child is having a first time assessment or having their statement converted to a plan. See the Council for Disabled Children website for info on Independent Support and a guide to EHC plans. It's important to familiarise yourself with what should happen as some LAs are doing it much better than others.

Auntie, why does your heart sink? It's a complete wagmire for parents of children with SEN. We are told so little and need to scramble around for scraps of information 'on the floor'. This has been my experience. Yes, there is good information out there from IPSEA and even from boroughs/ counties holding courses for parents on the change over from Statement to EHCP but threads like this are helpful means of finding out about them. The lack of infirnation and support for children and parents desperate / needing it is pitiful.

Why my heart sinks is exactly what you've said. This has all been so hyped by the DfE but parents are clearly finding it so hard to get information or not being told much if anything about the changes. Schools also vary widely in what they know, some have had good training, others don't seem to have much of any quality. There's too much reliance in people using the internet. Not everyone has the means or time to do much research. Even if you do you need to know what to search for.

Like you say, I've been scrabbling around for information too. I've found the phrase "No child or young person should lose their statement as a result of changing to the new system unless their needs have changed" used, but the problem is that they are kids and their needs are changing all the time, so to add that as a proviso gives LAs a perfect get-out.
More reassuring is what Lord Nash has said "we expect all children and young people who have a statement, who would have continued to have one under the current system, to be transferred to an EHC plan".
My worry is that I've been told by school that the local authority will be 'looking very closely' at children with 15 hrs support or less (this would include my son).
I've been advised by Contact a Family that I can refuse to have my son's statement transferred to an EHC at this stage (there's no legal requirement for him to be changed over until next year).

You can only refuse if your son is currently in Year 6. In that case the LA must consult you and take your views into account before they start the transfer process. This only applies to pupils in year 6 during this academic year. All other children/young people will have to transfer in accordance with your LA's published transfer timetable. There is nothing in the Transition Statutory Guidance that permits parents to refuse as all pupils must be transferred by April 2018. You can appeal to the SEND Tribunal if the LA decides to cease your son's statement instead of transferring to a plan. You would need evidence to support your case as with any other tribunal appeal. The LA MUST write to you at least two weeks before the transfer review process begins telling you the date on which it starts. This should be around the time your son's annual review is due. The LA then has fourteen weeks to complete the process. If they decide to cease the statement instead they must inform you by week 10. Lots of people are confusing the 'transfer review' with a review meeting. In fact the term 'transfer review' refers to the whole 14 week process. Remember use of the word 'must' in any statutory guidance or code of practice means the LA has by law to take that particular action. 'Should' means the LA is expected to take that action unless it can show very good reasons for not doing so. Useful distinction well worth remembering! Hope that helps.

Thanks for that reply - very helpful. My son is in Yr 5 now, and looking at the DofE report "Transition to the new 0 to 25 special educational needs and disability system", updated in March, this is not even in the Expected category for this academic year. Does that make any difference?

Hi not really. Actually yr 5 is quite a sensible time to transfer as the LA should have time to carry out the process properly and the plan will be all ready in time for them to consult with secondary schools from about Oct onwards. Where it's gone wrong this year is in those LAs that decided to do year 6 this year. There wasn't enough time to write the plans, agree them with parents and consult with schools before the deadline date for naming sec schools in an amended statement or new plan, which was 15 Feb. as a result many parents have been presented with plans that are little more than cut and pasted statements, which is not the idea. A lot of LAs changed ther minds about doing this once they realised the scale of the work involved. Once you find out that the process is definitely starting I would urge you to contact the Independent Support service in your area or what used to be parent partnership (now Independent Advice & Support Services) as they can support you through the process, help you contribute to the plan and check the draft plan with you when it arrives. Good luck!

Thanks again for your reply. One reason I'm so stressed about the timing of this is that we're applying for secondary school places this academic year, and I know that we couldn't get my son into our chosen school without a statement or EHC (it's a mainstream school, but selective, with a good SEN reputation). While I appreciate what you're saying about the benefits of transferring in Yr5, I'm envisaging him losing his statement now, and heading to secondary school without the necessary support. Even if he lost his statement next year, he'd already have his school place, and the school would have offered him a place with a full understanding of his needs. You mention that I can only refuse if my son is in Yr 6 - where does that info come from? Thanks again.

Hi it comes from statutory guidance called Transition to the new 0- 25 special educational needs and disability system. Latest version is march 2015. This guidance must be followed by LAs. You wouldn't usually apply for sec school place in year 5 this is done in the first term of year 6. That's when you have to tell the LA which school you want. Has your LA actually informed you in writing that it has started the conversion process and have you found the conversion timetable on the Local Offer website? If you want to PM me the name of the LA I will have a look.

Can anyone who has gone through a transfer to EHC can you tell me the format of the transition review? Do they use a form like the old annual review forms - I asked about my ds's upcoming one and the senco said they will use a blank ehc as a pro forma and work through that.

There should be a pro forma for a transition review, most LAs have devised one. The senco shouldn't use a blank ehc plan as a pro forma. It is the duty if the LA to write the plan, it cannot be delegated to schools. Look at Surrey's local offer SEND resources for very good examples of documents including transition review.

In my LA, if you want to apply for a place in a mainstream secondary resourced provision unit, you have to do so in the summer term of year 5 and have a statement/EHC in place at that time.

I'm in the middle of all this too, my DS (Yr6) received his finalised statement a few weeks ago. We had applied to secondaries through the normal process as advised by the LA, but they didn't name a secondary school on his statement and still haven't - we have a normal offer from one but they haven't thought through how they are going to support him at all. Which all lends weight to my case for getting independent special school named (I have an appeal lodged). Also we are in one of the LAs which is converting Yr 6 statements this year so we've got that in the mix too. At this rate he's going to be the only year 6 in the county still with a statement and the only one without a secondary school place.

There is a statutory date of 15 Feb for LAs to name a secondary school in an amended statement or EHC plan. This date also applies to pupils transferring from standalone infant to junior school, first to middle or middle to senior school. If your LA hasn't done this it has acted unlawfully and you would have grounds for making a complaint to the Local Gov ombudsman after following the LA's own complaints procedure or, if you have the financial means, seeking a judicial review through a lawyer. However if the statement is his first statement and was finalised after the 15 Feb the above can't apply but the LA should still name the next school ASAP. You need to seek advice from IPSEA or other advocacy provider.

Me? Thanks, yes, I have a solicitor. The statement was finalised in Jan, so that was a bit naughty of them. However since I posted this the LA have agreed to my chosen school, we're sorting out parts 2 and 3 now.