How important is an EHCP to getting additional support or entry to the right school

[Argybargy18]

Hi All

We are due to move to the UK. My daughter who is diagnosed asd, is in main stream nursery but learns very little she doesn’t sit still and she doesn’t focus enough to learn. Can say words but not to communicate. She clearly needs one on one support to help her focus and keep her from climbing the walls (literally) as well as speech therapy.

She will be going to preschool as soon as we arrive,. She is meant to start big school next September, but if she doesn’t get an EHCP in time what happens?.

Does she just go into mainstream school of the catchment area we are in and struggle there till she gets the support she needs?.

Is an EHCP the only way to get additional support?. I am just not clear on what happens to SN kids that don’t have this doc once they reach school age.

Would really appreciate any ones input. I’m sure it will be clear once we move and we can start having conversations with people, but it will help us decide how important moving to the right catchment area is.

Thank you

The school will give her some support without the EHCP but it may be limited, and it is only with an EHCP that the support becomes a legal obligation.

Preschool funding is easier to access through a different budget. It takes around six months to sort an EHCP.

When are you moving back? Admission to your catchment school isn’t guaranteed; you need to apply before January the year before. After that point, the Local Authority have a duty to find you a place somewhere, but no guarantees where. However once you have an EHCP then you have admissions priority.

It’s all a bit complicated and an EHCP is not guaranteed.

Some children do get fantastic support without one, some get rubbish support with one.

If you know where you are going to be living (county at least), google that area and “SENDIASS “. They are an advisory group who can help you through the process in your area.

Catchment area isn’t the top priority for admissions either, just to complicate things! And can alter year on year. Top priority goes to children who are or who have been in foster care, children with an EHCP, and then it might be catchment, it might be siblings, it might be faith based, it all varies according to the school or academy.

School will be able to provide some limited support with no EHCP.
The EHCP requires piles of paperwork and lots of evidence from multiple people.
It’s definitely worth trying to get one though.
It’s the funding that comes with it that really makes the difference.
Without an EHCP and if you haven’t already applied then, yes she will just get offered a place at the nearest school with spaces.
It is already cutting it a bit fine to have an EHCP in place for this September. It can be a lengthy process.

Thank you really appreciate your replies.

Sorry should have been clearer we are moving back to the UK in a couple of months. My daughter is 3. She will be going to preschool and then hopefully starting big school in Sept 22.

So what I am gathering is that she would go into a school as per normal process and we hope that she gets the support she needs.

The preschool sounds like it will be really proactive in getting extra help for her, I hope this will have a knock on effect to the school.

If the EHCP process has not yet been started, you are already too late to get an EHCP put in place for this coming September.

The EHCP process should take 20 weeks. In an ideal world, that is assuming the LA agrees to carry out an EHC Needs assessment, all the professionals submit their reports which are detailed and specific on time, the LA then agrees to issue a Plan, and then issues one that is legally compliant and in accordance with the legal timescales.

Unfortunately what often happens -

• LAs refuse to assess so parents have to appeal
• LAs refuse to issue an EHC Plan so parents have to appeal
• Reports are vague and woolly, so are useless and not always produced within the timescales
• Very often parents end up with a plan that is completely unfit for purpose so have to appeal

Appealing adds months onto the process. Our LA was spectacularly incompetent and it took us 71.5 weeks , 2 appeals, the involvement of the local councillor, and several formal complaints, one of which was upheld by the Local Government Ombudsman, to get our son's EHC Plan naming his choice of placement.

However, schools do have what is called a "best endeavours" duty whereby they are legally required to use their best endeavours "to secure that the special educational provision called for by the pupil’s special educational needs is made.” (Section 66 Children & Families act 2014)

Information here:

www.ipsea.org.uk/the-best-endeavours-duty

Everything Silence said.

If you were looking for specialist provision (Special school or Resource Base) then she would need the EHCP in place, if you are not, then she can go in to he mainstream school through the usual Primary admissions, and, in theory the school ought to "make reasonable adjustments to meet her needs". In Practice, this is spot on Some children do get fantastic support without one, some get rubbish support with one.

Once she starts at Pre-school, they will have to let her settle and then start gathering evidence, and, once they have that, apply for an EHC Assessment. There should be plenty of time for it to be in place if the Nursery are good an the LA efficient.

If the EHCP isn't finalised by Jan 22 you should apply for a school place via the normal admissions process. To see how likely you are to be offered a place at schools you are looking at you need to look at the admissions criteria and how places have been allocated in previous years.

Some schools have a social and medical needs admission category which you could apply under, although the bar to be considered under this is relatively high and you have to demonstrate why that school is the only school that can meet DD's needs.

If necessary the nursery and then school can apply for high needs top up funding whilst applying for an EHCP if additional funding is required to provide adequate support.

You say moving to the UK, EHCPs are only relevant in England. Wales, Scotland and NI have their own SEN system.

Thank you this has been really helpful