Get information and support Free legal guides and template letters Choosing a school or college Selecting a school or college Choosing a school without an EHC plan Choosing a school without an EHC plan Mainstream nurseries, schools and colleges Children and young people who have special educational needs (SEN) but no education, health and care (EHC) plan must be educated in mainstream settings, subject to certain very limited exceptions. This is set out in section 34 of the Children and Families Act (CFA) 2014. Please see our page on types of schools for the definition of ‘mainstream’. We also have information on finding a school or college which may help. A school must not refuse to admit a child with SEN because it does not feel able to cater for those needs. For more information, please see our page on the right to mainstream education. Special units within mainstream schools are usually not special schools, but part of the mainstream school to which they are attached. However, places are often in demand and those who outwardly show high levels of need are often prioritised. This means it’s unlikely that a child or young person would be able to access such provision without it being specified in an EHC plan. You can find more information on EHC plans and about specialist units on our website. Finding out about SEN Support Support for children and young people with SEN but no EHC plan will be through SEN Support. Please see our series of FAQs on how your nursery, school or college should help for information on what SEN Support should look like in each phase of education. Under section 69 of the CFA 2014, the governing bodies of maintained schools and maintained nursery schools in England, and the proprietors of Academy schools must prepare a report containing SEN information – these are called SEN Information Reports. These SEN Information Reports must contain information about: the kinds of SEN for which provision is made at the school how children and young people with SEN are identified and assessed how provision might be made for them, and how the effectiveness of such provision is evaluated, and how they support children and young people with SEN to take part in school activities. If you are considering a school or college for your child or young person with SEN but no EHC plan, you should: Check what the setting’s SEN Information Report says. You will find this information on the school website and it is a valuable tool for looking at the kind of provision available. Although sixth form colleges and further education colleges are not under the same obligation to produce these reports, they should have information available on their policies and the support they offer, so you should check their websites too. If you can’t find the information, you can ask for it. Check your local authority’s (LA) Local Offer, available on your LA website. This should also contain useful information about the type of support available in your area for children and young people with SEN. Ask to meet the person responsible for SEN Support in the setting, and discuss with them what types of support might be available for your child or young person. You can also read more about how your nursery, school or college should support you and about how your LA should support you on our website. Moving to a new phase of education on SEN Support A child moves to a new phase of education when they move from nursery to primary school, or from primary school to secondary school, for example. Young people move to a new phase of education when they leave secondary school for post-16 education in a further education college, for example. Maintained nurseries, schools, Academies and institutions in the further education sector have a duty to do all that they can to put in place the special educational provision required by a student’s SEN. This is called using its ‘best endeavours’ and it is a legal duty found in section 66 of the CFA 2014. This means that your child’s support should continue as they move through the different phases of their education and training. It must not stop just because they have changed setting or moved onto a new phase of education. However, you may have some concerns or questions about the way this support is going to be delivered, and whether and how your child will be supported in the new environment. As soon as you can, you should: Check the setting’s website for information about the special educational provision it typically provides. The SEN Information Report is a good starting place. Ask the SENCO or equivalent member of staff about what the setting can do to support your child. Visit the setting and consider the environment and the support on offer. Check what your LA’s Local Offer says about transition support for children and young people who receive SEN Support and are moving to a new phase of their education. Consider whether the special education provision that is usually available for the next phase of education and/or training will meet your child's SEN. If you are concerned that it will not, you can consider requesting an EHC needs assessment as the first step in getting an EHC plan. When considering whether an EHC needs assessment or an EHC plan is needed, your LA must look ahead to any upcoming move to a new phase of education. Even if these things have not been necessary up to now in the current setting, this change of circumstance might mean one or both do become necessary. Special nurseries, schools and colleges In most cases, a child or young person needs to have an EHC plan to attend a special setting. If your child or young person needs to attend a special school (or you think they may do) then the first step will be asking for an EHC needs assessment to be carried out. This may lead to an EHC plan being issued. You have the right to request a particular school is named in an EHC plan, including special settings, and a conditional right to have such a setting named in the plan. There are some very limited situations where children or young people can be placed in a special school or college without an EHC plan. These are: for the purposes of an EHC needs assessment (or, in certain circumstances, while the child or young person remains admitted to a special school or special post-16 institution, following an EHC needs assessment there) but only where the LA, head teacher or principal, parents/carers or young person, and anyone the LA must get advice from in an EHC needs assessment have all agreed to such placement following a change in his or her circumstances, but only where the LA, the head teacher or principal, and the parents/carers or young person have all agreed to such placement if the special school is established in a hospital and is either a community or foundation special school, or an Academy school if the school is independent or a non-maintained special school or post-16 institution and neither the LA or Department for Education are paying for the placement, or if the special school or special post-16 institution is an Academy, and that Academy’s arrangements allow it to admit children and young people without EHC plans. In the case of special Academies, parents and young people need to be confident that the provision on offer is suitable to meet needs, because there is no obligation on the LA to secure anything for them without the legal protection of an EHC plan. Without identifying a child or young person’s SEN and the provision their SEN requires through an EHC needs assessment, it could be difficult to tell if the placement and provision is right, in which case an EHC needs assessment should be sought. Alternatives to school or college Not all children and young people with SEN are taught in a school or college. Some parents choose to home educate their children. Other children are educated otherwise than in a school or college because it would be inappropriate for their special educational provision to be made in a school. You can read more about home education and education otherwise on our website. 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