If your child has, or you as a young person have, an EHC plan, your local authority (LA) must review it at least once a year. This is to make sure it stays up-to-date and continues to provide the support needed.

At the end of the review, there are only three decisions your LA can make:

1. To maintain the EHC plan as it is (not make any changes)
2. To change the EHC plan (and say what changes it is proposing), or
3. To cease the EHC plan if it thinks it is no longer necessary for it to be in place, following consultation.

You can appeal all three decisions in the SEND Tribunal. You will also have the right to mediation. When making your appeal you can try to get changes made to the EHC plan, even if your LA decided not to make any changes to the EHC plan.

You will have the right to mediation/appeal when your LA:

• writes to tell you the EHC plan is being maintained without changes, or your LA plans to stop it, or
• sends to you the final amended EHC plan, if the decision made by the LA was to the amend the EHC plan.

If your child is, or you are, coming up to a phase transfer (for example, moving from primary school to secondary school, or secondary school to post-16 education), your LA must carry out the review well in advance of the move.

Click on the links below to read more. 

The annual review process

Annual reviews in Year 9 and beyond

Annual reviews in advance of a transfer between phases of education

Complaining when the LA has not completed an annual review

Objecting to the amendments the LA is proposing to make to an EHC plan