EHCP should I challenge the school?

[Souvenir81]

Hi; not sure the title is correct. My daughter is in year 8 and has an EDHC since year 6. She seems happy and settled which is the main thing for us; but apart from the end of year 7 when we had a meeting; we don’t hear a lot on how is the school supporting her and how she is doing/progressing.

she is in bottom sets for maths and English. I l know they have additional support on those classes but apart from that I don’t think there are any interventions; only a few sessions of speech and language therapy this year. Her diagnosis is speech and language disorder; not severe but impact her learning. The school gets 10k from the council to support her plan.

We are paying £70 a week for English and maths tutoring as I don’t think the school is doing enough.

Shall we challenge the school for additional support? Inform us on progress and how she is doing more often? Or let them bit, as state schools are over stretched as it is.

Just a bit more info reg her report last year

maths 36%. Average class 44% which is already a bottom set

english 45% Average class 56%

science 47% class 66%

Are annnual reviews of her EHCP taking place? Do you have any sort of termly check-in with the SENDCO?

Was her EP assessment in Y6 helpful when thinking about her strengths, challenges and potential? A decent assessment would give you a sense of this and could be a helpful starting point for discussion as to with her needs are currently being met. It might need updating?

If you are in England, have a look at the SEND Code of Practice 2015 - it sets out what school should be doing. There is also an easy read version if you can't face wading through it in detail.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25

If DD has an EHCP all the provision she reasonably requires should be in section F, is it?

If the provision is detailed, specified and quantified in F it must be provided. Ultimately, it is the LA’s responsibility to ensure it is provided and you can enforce it, via judicial review if necessary. However, if the provision isn’t detailed, specified and quantified in F then it can’t be enforced and you need to request an early review to improve the EHCP. Focus on F rather than the funding then it can be enforced.

Have you spoken to the SENCO? Was the meeting in Y7 the annual review? Are more often reviews/communication in F?

Thank you for the info; we did have an annual review last year but not termly meetings. Will review the plan and request a meeting with SENCO

Are termly meetings in F?

Requesting a meeting with the SENCO is a good idea. If the EHCP needs amending you can request an early review. On their website, IPSEA has a model letter you can use. Unfortunately the LA doesn’t have to agree to one. If they refuse to hold an early review there’s no right of appeal, you would either have to wait for the AR or request a reassessment of needs.