EHCP assessment

[EHCPHelp]

Hoping someone can advise. I've just got confirmation that an EHCNA will be carried out. They've said they'll seek information from the distinct medical officer, speech and language therapy and a few other departments.

My question is; my child doesn't yet have a diagnosis and is not currently on the waitlist for one, however she does have a confirmed delay /disorder in receptive/expressive speech and a few other areas. Does it matter that she's not currently under the care of a paediatrician or on th pathway towards diagnosis?

Also we've been on th NHS waitlist for speech and language for over a year and have not yet been seen. However, she's been having private speech therapy. Can I ask that they seek advice from her private SLT since she doesn't have even an NHS assessment/report?

Thanks for reading

1. No, it doesn’t matter that your child is not under the care of a paediatrician/ on diagnosis pathway.
2. The LA must seek advice from any person that you reasonably request that you reasonable request that they seek advice from (SEND Regulations 2014, Reg 6(1)(h)). If you request that the LA consider your independent SLT’s report/advice, they must do so. Whether they will take it on board (esp. if they are commissioning their own assessment) is another matter!

Sorry - typo, you don’t need to doubly reasonably request!

Thanks for replying! I'm guessing that I'll be contacted by some sort of medical personnel in order for them to get the information on my child that they need?

The LA will contact your child’s school (if at school) and the professionals from whom it is seeking advice. The LA EP may contact you to arrange for a consultation with you in addition to their assessment of your child. The EP assessment will most likely be carried out in the school setting if the child is at school.

If you want any reports from your private SLT to be considered, or you want the LA to contact the SLT for advice, then you should proactively request this.

It doesn’t matter DC doesn’t yet have a diagnosis. EHCPs are based on needs, not diagnosis. It also doesn’t matter DD is on the SALT waiting list, the EHCNA is governed by statutory timescales separate to the normal waiting lists.

During the EHCNA the LA must seek advice and information from:
a) the child’s parent or the young person;
b) educational advice (usually from the head teacher or principal);
c) medical advice and information from a health care professional;
d) psychological advice and information from an educational psychologist;
e) advice and information in relation to social care;
f) advice and information from any other person the local authority thinks appropriate;
g) where the child or young person is in or beyond year 9, advice and information in relation to provision to assist the child or young person in preparation for adulthood and independent living; and
h) advice and information from any person the child’s parent or young person reasonably requests that the local authority seek advice from.

You can request they contact the independent SALT. Although I would also be proactive and ask the SALT directly and send it to the LA yourself so you know it is done.

Thanks @YellowRosesWithRedTips I'll get that done. Thanks @Schneetropfen

I'm pleasantly surprised the assessment was approved as my county usually rejects and people have to appeal. I don't want to mess it up!

@YellowRosesWithRedTips and anyone else, can I please pick your brains again.

I've been contacted by the council's EP and a co-produce session set up. I asked the EP if my child would undergo an EP assessment ahead of the session but she said that on the call they would go through the information already submitted and was happy for me to forward the invite to any professionals involved with my child.
Is that okay? We've not had any NHS involvement as are on waiting lists for SALT, but we've had private SALT for some time now and I submitted a number of reports from them. I've also invited them to the call and am confident that they would state my child needs a smaller environment and 1:1 support etc.

I'm wondering if I do actually need to push for the EP to assess regardless?

Also, does an invite to a co-production meeting indicate we might get the EHCP granted?

A question on provision and what to ask for, I'd like my child to go to mainstream that has a speech and language hub. I may be naïve but I assume that by virtue of it being a speech and language hub, he'll get the SALT intervention he needs. I guess though that what needs to be proven on the co-produce call is that my child's needs are such that the only provision that would work is a mainstream with a speech and language unit?

Finally, we've just started private OT and have had an assessment come through, the private OT indicated my child would need some OT support so I submitted that and requested for OT intervention. I've had a refusal to assess letter from the NHS OT stating that if my child had needs, a referral would have been made prior to the EHCP request. I assume that i can challenge this as this is equivalent to a "not known to us response"?

Grateful for any help or advice thanks for getting this far. The info and help I've gotten from Mumsnet has been invaluable to me, much more than i've gotten from anyone in real life!

I may be naïve but I assume that by virtue of it being a speech and language hub, he'll get the SALT intervention he needs.

That isn’t necessarily the case. If DS requires SALT, it must be in F whatever placement he attends. If it isn’t detailed, specified and quantified in F DS may not receive it and it wouldn’t be enforceable. You will need evidence an ARP is required. If the LA agree to issue, they will issue a draft, at that point you will be able to make representations and name your preferred placement.

During the EHCNA, the LA must seek advice from the people I listed in my pp. Waiting lists are irrelevant. Normal referrals are irrelevant. Yes, you should push for a comprehensive EP assessment. The LA will try not to as EP time is scarce at the moment. Existing reports can be used if you, the LA and report writer agree it is sufficient. Unless the SALT and OT reports were written for the EHCNA process, they are likely to be insufficient, because they are unlikely to detail, specify and quantify the provision required.

Being invited to a co-production meeting doesn’t guarantee the LA will issue, unfortunately.

Thanks very much for responding. Yes the private SALT reports are written for EHCP and have detailed requirements for support. I might ask in writing that the EP confirm the existing reports are sufficient. I think the help suggested in the reports are sufficient but I've requested another SALT EHCP report from the most recent therapist and I know that will state the right support.

Re evidence needed for ARP, apart from SALT I'm not sure what other evidence I should be providing? The ARP profile is one that suits my child, perhaps I should print out the required profile?

I will push back to the OT team, thank you

You should still push for a proper EP assessment. But, you shouldn’t need an LA SALT report, and if the independent OT assessment is sufficient you shouldn’t need an LA one either (which is likely to be less detailed, specified and quantified anyway). Where existing evidence is sufficient the LA must not seek more advice, the problem is LAs often argue it is insufficient. If the OT isn’t sufficient you should push back to the LA rather than the OT team because it is the LA who are responsible for the EHCNA even if they have to commission independent assessments. The SALT evidence may be sufficient to support a placement at an ARP. Other than that EP and OT reports can help.

Thanks again so very much @YellowRosesWithRedTips . I've pushed back for an EP and for acceptance of my private OT report/LA to ensure NHS OT provide a response if they don't accept my OT report.

Hi @EHCPHelp, just wondered how you got on with the EHCP process? I hope it’s been issued now.

Do you have an update re NHS OT, as I’m having similar problems in terms of ‘not known to service’. I have a private OT assessment/report coming up in the next couple of weeks.

Also just wondering what evidence you used to justify the need for ARP. I have a private SLT report written for the EHCNA but it doesn’t go in too much depth in terms of the type of setting/environment required and not sure if I should ask for more detail.

Hi @Ponche sorry it took me so long to respond. I did get some basic OT added into the EHCP which works for us at the moment. I submitted my private reports which is there they got the provision from. We got a mainstream school which were fine with at the moment. I think for ARPs, it might be helpful if the reports submitted indicate a need to it? Ours very lightly touched on small class sizes, I don't think that would have been enough to get an ARP if I'm honest