Does school have to do EP assessment if Paediatrician advises it?

[Kodiaka]

DS's sendco said he'd be seen by the school's EP last year but they kept putting it off. At the end of last year, they said it would happen this half-term but they have now delayed again. DS is in Y6 and we're really worried about the Y7 transition if his needs aren't clearly understood. (Possible ASD, ADHD, memory issues and more.)

School referred for a neurodevelopmental assessment and the doctor recommended an EP assessment (among other things), so does the school have any obligation to do this sooner rather than later? I'm so tired of fighting for everything. :(

No, they don’t have to. Unfortunately, there is huge pressure on EP time at the moment and unless an EP assessment is part of an EHCNA DC may not receive one. However, you can request an EHCNA yourself. The paed could also have made the request for an EHCNA.

Perhaps the doctor isn’t aware of the difficulty schools have in referring to an EP. It’s very difficult to get EP time these days. There’s no reason why you can’t apply for EHCNA.

The last EP assessment we had ( which we only got as part of the EHCP process) was via zoom from Ireland- she was the nearest one the SEND team could access!
EPs are as rare as hens teeth. My county has none, except private ones. I have been quoted £1700 for an assessment, my SEND budget can't afford it.

Yes, they are using half the available EP resource to duplicate more thorough independent assessments here, in order to create a basis to rebut suggested provision. In my LA area they don't even bother going through the motions of actually meeting and assessing the children, they just write a report using the independent evidence, but substituting proposals for diluted provision (generally quality first teaching). So a small group chidren have multiple reports whilst others get no EP input at all.