What should I expect to see in a Draft EHC plan

Every EHC plan must include at least 12 sections, but each local authority can decide how to set these out.

The sections are:

A: The views, interests and aspirations of you and your child or the young person.

B: Your child’s or young person’s special educational needs.

C: Health needs related to their SEN or to a disability.

D: Social care needs related to their SEN or to a disability.

E: Planned outcomes for your child or the young person.

F: Special educational provision. Provision must be specified for each and every need shown in section B.

G: Any health provision required that is related to their SEN or to a disability.

H1: Any social care provision that must be made for your child or young person under 18.

H2: Any other social care provision required that is related to their SEN or to a disability.

I: The name and type of the school, maintained nursery school, post-16 institution or other institution to be attended.

J: Details of how any personal budget will support particular outcomes and the provision it will be used for.

K: The advice and information gathered during the EHC needs assessment.

Where the child or young person is in or beyond year 9, the EHC plan must also include the provision required by your child or young person to help prepare for adulthood and independent living.

Whilst the plan is in draft form, you will have 15 days to suggest any changes you would like to be considered and you can request to meet with them.

This gives you an opportunity to meet with the SEND Operations Service (and any other professionals you would like to invite), to discuss provision and go over the draft plan, including requesting any changes you would like to make.

Ahead of the meeting it can be helpful to prepare notes about any questions you have or the changes you would like to request.

Once the local authority have received your response to the draft, they may issue further drafts to you for approval and will ask you which school is your preferred choice to be named. 

All identified special educational needs must be specified, and the EHC plan should also include arrangements for setting and monitoring shorter term targets towards outcomes. 

 

Provision must be detailed, specific and quantified within in an EHC plan. This means that it should be clear to parents, young people, and schools/providers what it is expected will be achieved with the provision, and who has to do what, when, and how often.

When reading through the draft plan there are a few things to consider in order to get the best possible final plan.

• Check that all the identified SEN are included in section B of the plan. Cross-reference with the specialist advice/reports (educational psychology, occupational/speech & language therapist etc).
• Check that each identified ‘need’ (sections B, C, and D) has a corresponding ‘provision’ (sections F, G H1 & H2).
• Section F should contain anything which 'educates' or 'trains' your child, for example this might include occupational or speech & language therapies, or travel training.
• Provision must be detailed, specific and quantified within in an EHC plan. Watch out for vague wording such as ‘opportunities for’, ‘access to’ or ‘as required’.
• Outcomes should be SMART, read our information on Outcomes Explained
• Check health and social care needs have been identified and provision included.
• From Year 9 onwards, provision to support preparation for adulthood and independent living.
• For a young person, have the local authority made provision across five days (as outlined in the SEND Code Of Practice, 8.39 -9.42).
• Read the Ipsea EHC Plan Checklist for more detailed advice about what a plan should contain.
• Read the Council for Disabled Children EHCP Exemplar Guide

The SEND code of practice 2015 says that the provision in section F:

must be detailed and specific and should normally be quantified, for example, in terms of the type, hours and frequency of support and level of expertise. 

In an EHC Plan there are 3 sections (F, G and H) which explain ‘provision’ – the recommended support and strategies which aim to help the child or young people make progress in their learning and become confident, independent individuals.

There should be recommended provision for each of the child’s needs outlined in sections B, C and D and it should be clear how the provision will help the child achieve the outcomes in section E of the EHC Plan.

The provision in section F of the EHC Plan is especially important.  This is the support needed to help the child to learn and a Local Authority has the legal duty to ensure that the special educational provision specified in section F is secured.

This is partly so that every teacher, assistant, therapist and others working with the child knows precisely what they should be doing to help him or her.  Also, if it is not specific, it is hard to measure whether it has been achieved and whether it has made a difference to a child’s life.  It may be difficult to check it is happening and to enforce it.

Health Care Provision

The Children and Families Act 2014 says:

Health care provision or social care provision which educates or trains a child or young person is to be treated as special educational provision. (s21, 5)

Any Health Care Provision which educates or trains should be in section F.

The local authority might arrange that these are delivered by the local health care partner but if they are not able to do so, the legal duty remains with the local authority to arrange these services – possibly from an independent therapist.

This includes therapies such as speech and language therapy, occupational therapy or physiotherapy or the services provided by CAMHS (Child Adolescent Mental Health Service) which are needed for education or training purposes.

Example 1 

Provision which is NOT specific  - Harry would benefit from access to therapy throughout the year.

What does this mean?  Every week throughout the year?  Once a term throughout the year? Different people working with Harry might interpret this differently.  Who will provide this therapy?  It would also be impossible to enforce this through a court. 

Provision which is specific - Each week in term time Harry will receive one 40 minute session of direct 1:1 speech and language therapy from a qualified therapist. This will focus on producing speech sounds and fluency and will be reviewed after 3 terms.

The therapist knows exactly how often he/she will work with Harry and for how long.  It will be easy to check whether this is happening and to enforce it if it is not.  It will also be easier to assess the impact.

Example 2

Provision which is NOT specific - Chloe will have weekly support with developing friendships.

What form will this support take?  Who will provide it?  Does ‘weekly’ mean once a week?  If it is a social skills programme which will help Chloe, how long will each session last for?

Provision which is specific -Chloe will attend a nurture group for one hour, two times a week, delivered by two trained Teaching Assistants. This will involve a small group of no more than 8 children with similar needs and will be overseen by the SENCO.

Examples of ‘woolly’ wording which is not specific: 

‘access to’      ‘as required/ as needed’        ‘opportunities for’        ‘adults’        ‘support with’     ‘(child) will decide…’

The SEND Code says that health and social care provision in sections G and H also ‘should be detailed and specific’(9.69).   If you feel that some provision in your child’s plan is not clear and specific, talk first to the Family Services Coordinator who is responsible for the plan.