Section F of the draft EHC plan does not detail any of the special educational provision our son needs. There is only a paragraph to say the school will decide how much provision he needs and when. Is this lawful?

Section 37(2)(c) of the Children and Families Act (CFA) 2014 says your LA must specify the special educational provision in your child’s educational, health and care (EHC) plan.  Section F of your son’s EHC plan must contain special educational provision to match each and every one of his special educational needs (SEN) which are identified in Section B.   

Case law has confirmed how specific wording in EHC plans should be, and that your LA must make decisions about provision when writing an EHC plan; it cannot pass this responsibility to someone else, such as a school. For example, the EHC plan should not say anything like “support to be determined by the setting”.   

Our page on what an EHC plan should contain has more helpful information. You can also use IPSEA’s EHC plan checklist to check whether your son’s draft EHC plan complies with how the law says it must be set out.  

Your LA must give you at least 15 days to write to it and make representations (tell the LA your views) about the contents of the EHC Plan and/or ask for a meeting. It is important to give your views so do make sure you do this in the way which feels comfortable for you. If you ask for a meeting once you receive a draft EHC plan, your LA must agree to meet with you.  

Before making your views known you should read through all of the professional advice which you will have received along with the draft EHC plan. Professionals may have identified the type and frequency of special educational provision your son requires which must be specified in Section F.   

When giving your LA your views (either in writing or at a meeting with the LA), you should ask that the draft EHC plan is changed in order to specify all of the special educational provision your son requires. Remind the LA officer that in law, Section F of the EHC plan must specify all of the special educational provision your son requires, even if this is being arranged by the school.   

Once the EHC plan is finalised, if you are still unhappy with the educational contents and/or the school you asked for has not been named in the final plan, you will have the right to appeal to the SEND Tribunal. The deadline for appealing is two months from the date of the final plan or one month from the date of the mediation certificate, whichever date falls the latest. You can find out more on our pages about appealing to the SEND Tribunal.   

An EHC plan is legally enforceable from the day it is finalised, even if you decide to appeal it, and the law says your LA (not your child’s school) must secure all of the special educational provision set out in section F. This is set out in section 42(2) CFA 2014.