I want a special school placement, and my local authority will only consult with certain special schools who have put in tenders as part of its procurement process – they say these are ‘Framework Schools’ and they are the only ones I can request.

Some local authorities (LAs) use a list of certain schools which they will consult with when a parent or young person requests that a special school is named in section I of the EHC Plan.

However, when a parent or young person makes a request for any of the schools or institutions listed in section 38(3) of the Children and Families Act (CFA) 2014, the LA must consult the school or institution (this is set out in section 39(2) CFA 2014). You can read more about requesting a section 38(3) CFA 2014 setting on our website. Your LA can’t refuse to consult on the basis that the school or institution is not on its procurement list.

It is also worth remembering the overall time limits for the EHC plan process. Your LA must issue the finalised EHC plan within 20 weeks of the initial request for the EHC needs assessment. Delaying any consultation with the requested school will potentially mean that your LA misses this time limit. It will not be lawful for your LA to extend this time limit because it has not made a decision about something in the EHC plan (including what school should be named).

If your LA refuses to consult a school or institution you have made a request for under section 38(3) CFA 2014, you can take action.

Latest

Vacancy: Training Coordinator

We’re looking for a dedicated and detail-oriented Training Coordinator to manage and organise our SEND law training sessions
EHC plan masterclass - existing plans: 26th November

For parents and carers who already have an EHC plan in place for their child, this training looks at the information a plan should contain, through to how to achieve that through annual reviews, re-assessments and appeals to the SEND Tribunal
Introduction to SEND Law: 10th December

Designed specifically for parents, carers and supporting family members, this training provides an introduction to the law on special educational needs and disabilities
EHC plan masterclass - obtaining a plan: 5th November

A training day for parents, carers and supporting family members of children with SEND, developed to guide families through the process of obtaining an Education, Health and Care plan

There is a school named in my daughter’s EHC plan, but over the last few months she has become incredibly anxious and is too anxious to attend school some days. She has now missed a significant amount of time. What can we do?
Our daughter has an education, health and care plan but we wish to educate her at home. She misses a lot of school because of health needs and we think that it would be better for her to be educated at home.

Does the local authority have to help us with this?
We have received the draft education, health and care plan and all the professional advice.

We have been told that we can express a preference for a school but believe our son needs intensive special help which can only be provided in a specialist independent school for autistic pupils. This school is a fully independent school, but we’ve been told that we can’t express a preference for an independent school and the LA intends to name one of its own special schools. What can we do?
We’ve received the draft education, health and care plan and have found a maintained special school we really like for our son.

At our meeting with the local authority, we expressed a preference for this school, but we were told we’d be wasting our time as it is in a neighbouring local authority who has said that the school is full.
I’ve visited the local secondary school, which is the school we want our son to attend. Our son has Down’s syndrome, and the head made it clear that he does not want him to attend.

He says that the school cannot meet our son’s needs. At our meeting with the local authority officer to discuss the draft education health and care plan, she said it would not be in our son’s best interests to force the school to take him and perhaps a special school would be better, but we do believe that he thrives best in a mainstream setting. And, just as important as his formal education, we want him to grow up in, and as part of, his local community.

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