Education, Health and Care Plans

• An Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan is a legal document for children and young people aged 0 to 25 for children with exceptional special educational needs – this is a small number of children each year. It describes a child or young person’s educational, health and social care needs.

• An EHC plan outlines a child or young person’s strengths and needs, and describes individual outcomes that are agreed for that child and young person.

• The plan describes what extra help will be given to support the child or young person to achieve their aspirations. It details the education, health and care provision that is required to help the child or young person achieve the outcomes in their plan.

• If a child or young person has an EHC plan, they will take that plan with them when they move school. The kinds of resources available in these different kinds of schools may vary, so this may mean changing the provision in the plan. A change in the type of provision is usually agreed at an annual review, and you will be part of that process. Your child will be part of that process too when they are able to, at any age.

• An EHC plan can continue in place (revised as needed) while they are still in education and until the goals of the plan have been met. For some children and young people, their plan will end before they leave school. Some young people will still need a plan when they are in the sixth form or in an FE (college) course.

• When young aged 16 or above have the capacity to make decisions for themselves, their views will be given priority.

• The EHC plan is a single plan that shows the support a child will need for education in school as well as support from health and care services that will help a child or young people achieve the outcomes specified in the plan.

• The Education element of the plan will explain what is needed for the child or young/person to attend school and achieve the best they can in their learning. It will state which school or setting the child or young person will go to.
• The Health element of the plan will set out any health services or health support that the child needs to ensure they can learn and participate fully in school life. Some health provision will only be needed while the child or young person is in education. Some health provision will be needed whether or not the child or young person is in education.

• The Social Care element of the plan will set out any services that the local authority will provide to support the child and their family to live as ‘ordinary’ a life as possible

• Some children will need an EHC plan at a very young age. Most will not need a plan until after they start school, because of the way that early years education is funded in Camden.

• An Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment is a legal process that requires that education, health and social care professionals work together to gather information about a child or young person’s special educational needs. This helps the Local Authority to decide whether the school or setting needs extra funding to be able to meet that child or young person’s needs in that setting.

• An EHC needs assessment should take a maximum of 20 weeks from start to finish.

• An ‘Assessment Co-ordinator’ will be allocated who will help you to understand the EHC needs assessment process and make sure the local authority ask the right people for advice. The Assessment Co-ordinator may be an educational psychologist, a therapist, a teacher, a transitions social worker, or another professional who you know and who is involved in the EHC needs assessment.

• During the EHC needs assessment process, parents and professionals will build up a plan. This is called ‘My Assessment Plan’. It is set out like an EHC plan, but it will not become a legal EHC plan unless it is agreed near the end of the assessment that extra help is necessary.

• A statutory EHC needs assessment process may lead to an EHC plan being issued. This will depend on the level of extra help required to meet a child or young person’s special educational needs.

• If an EHC plan is not agreed, the school or setting and family should use ‘My Assessment Plan’ as the basis for early intervention to ensure that the right provision is in place to meet the child or young person’s needs. (The family would also have the right of appeal to the First Tier Tribunal).

• Children, young people and their families should be at the centre of the assessment, planning, and review process. In Camden, professionals work together with parents / carers to ensure they understand your child’s needs. The LA firmly that believe we will get the best outcomes for children by working with you in partnership.

• Where the child is old enough and able, we encourage the child or young person to contribute to planning too.

• An EHC needs assessment can be started as soon after a child is born as necessary. For most children, however, the local authority are more likely to agree an EHC needs assessment when a child is approaching or has started in education. This is because young children can develop and change quickly, and they need to make sure that that if they agree an EHC plan before a child starts in any education, the plan is ‘up to date’.

• When a young person aged 16 or older is able to make decisions for themselves, the LA will work directly with them when they request plans, or when anyone else requests an assessment on their behalf.

• The LA’s approach to developing EHC plans is to ensure they are person-centred and clearly define what outcomes should be achieved.

• During the assessment process, parents / carers and professionals, together with children and young people when they are able to, will meet together in a ‘Team Around the Child’ or ‘TAC’ meeting to agree the outcomes that should be achieved for that child or young person.

An EHC needs assessment can be requested by a school or setting, by a parent or carer, or by a young person aged 16 or older. In any request, the Local Authority will need evidence to show that:

• the child or young person’s needs are exceptional,
• that the school or setting has put in place relevant support that has a good evidence base from their own assessments
• that the cost of the extra support is more than what is ordinarily available in that school or setting

Some assessments are initiated by the Local Authority because they have been given evidence by someone else, usually by a health service, that a child will not be able to access education without the extra support of an EHC plan.  Parents and carers will always be informed about this and will be asked for consent before any assessment is started.

You will need to give your consent before the request can be made. You can ask for help from the professionals who work with your child:

• If your child attends an early years setting (e.g. nursery, primary school), you should speak to the staff there. They can call on extra help, for example the Early Years Intervention Team for those in a Children’s Centre or Private and Voluntary setting; or school support services for children attending a nursery class in a mainstream school.

• If your child is not in education yet, and you are worried about his or her development, the best people to talk to are your Health Visitor or GP. They may make a referral to health and therapy services in MOSAIC.

• If you attend MOSAIC, you can speak to the professionals who work with your child there.

• If your child attends a school or college, talk to the class teacher, form tutor or special educational needs co-ordinator.

An EHC needs assessment can be requested by a school or setting, by a parent or carer, or by a young person aged 16 or older. In any request, the Local Authority will need evidence to show that:

• the child or young person’s needs are exceptional,
• that the school or setting has put in place relevant support that has a good evidence base from their own assessments
• that the cost of the extra support is more than what is ordinarily available in that school or setting.

If you have discussed your child’s progress with the school or setting and you believe your child’s needs are greater than the school or setting believes, you can ask for an assessment yourself by writing directly to the Special Educational Needs Team.

You can also telephone the team to discuss your request as they can help you with what information to send. You can also email or write.

Telephone: 020 7974 6500 – ask to speak to a Special Educational Needs Case Officer who can help with what information needs to be provided.

Email: sen.assessment@camden.gov.uk

Postal address:
Special Educational Needs Team
London Borough of Camden
Supporting People Directorate
Camden Town Hall (for 5 Pancras Square)
London, WC1H 9JE

If you make a request, the team will gather information from the school or setting, and any involved professionals. It is recommended that you forward any reports from school, health therapists or any other professionals, with your request form, to help the Local Authority make a decision more quickly.

Children with an EHC plan

The schools admissions application process is different for children with an education, health and care (EHC) plan. Parents of children who have an EHC plan should not apply through the ordinary process, but should be guided by the SEN team of the local authority that maintains the statement or EHC plan.

You can contact The Camden SEN Team by calling 020 7974 6500 or by emailing sen.enquiries@camden.gov.uk

Children being assessed for an EHC plan

If your child is being assessed for special educational needs you need to apply by completing the common application. You do not have to wait until the assessment is completed before enrolling your child. Please seek the advice of the SEN team of the local authority that is carrying out the assessment.

You can contact the Camden SEN Team by calling 020 7974 6500 or by emailing sen.enquiries@camden.gov.uk

General school admissions

If your child does not have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and they are not in the process of an assessment for one, they will need to apply via the general school admissions process.

To find out more about the school admissions process, you can visit their webpage or contact the school admissions team directly:

Telephone: 020 7974 1625

Fax: 020 7974 4035

E-mail: admissions@camden.gov.uk

Website: www.camden.gov.uk/admissions