Assessments, Education, Health and Care Plans

What is an EHC needs assessment?

The majority of children and young people with special education needs (SEN) or disabilities will have the support they need within local mainstream early years settings, schools or colleges, but for some children and young people, there may be  concerns about the progress they are making within their settings, even with this support. 

Some of these children and young people may require something called an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment so it is clear what their special educational needs are - this is sometimes called an EHCNA. 

Who can request an EHC needs assessment?

The following people can request an EHC needs assessment for a child or young person aged between 0 and 25:

• The child's parent or carer
• A young person over the age of 16 but under the age of 25 
• A person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution

In addition, anyone else can bring a child or young person who has (or may have) SEN to the attention of the local authority, particularly where they think an EHC needs assessment may be necessary. This could include, for example, foster carers, health and social care professionals, early years practitioners, youth offending teams or probation services.

How do I request an EHC needs assessment?

We would always encourage families, schools and other professionals to work together to discuss the provision in place for a child, review what is working and what else might be appropriate and to decide together if/when an EHCNA might be appropriate. Regardless of who makes the initial request, we will always then seek advice from all the people listed below.

Schools often hold the most comprehensive records of a child or young person's needs and the support and provision that has already been put in place, and so EHCNA requests most often come from them. However, any of the people listed above can make the initial EHCNA request via our EHC Portal.

Access the EHC portal here.

If you cannot access the portal, you can also contact the SEND Family Services EHCNA Request team on 01473 263688 or EHCNArequest@suffolk.gov.uk. However, we would recommend using the portal wherever possible - it allows you to log in and see the progress of your application at any time, provides secure messaging directly with your child's named Family Services officer and helps us respond to requests and queries as quickly and efficiently as possible.

What happens during an EHC needs assessment?

During an EHC needs assessment, the Local Authority will request information from :

• the child’s parent or carer
• the young person themselves
• the health service (the relevant Integrated Care Board (ICB) or NHS England where it has responsibility for a child or young person)
• local authority officers responsible for social care for children or young people with SEN
• where a child attends an early years setting, the manager of that setting
• where a child or young person is registered at a school, the head teacher (or equivalent)
• where the young person attends a post-16 institution, the principal (or equivalent)

Local authorities then use the information from the assessment to:
• establish and record the views, interests and aspirations of the parents and child or young person
• provide a full description of the child or young person’s special educational needs and any health and social care needs
• establish outcomes across education, health and social care based on the child or young person’s needs and aspirations
• specify the provision required and how education, health and care services will work together to meet the child or young person’s needs and support the achievement of the agreed outcomes

The Local Authority then has the responsibility to decide whether it is necessary to issue something called an Education, Health and Care Plan or EHCP; to specify additional support and provision for the child or young person additional to that which is normally available from SEN Support. An EHC needs assessment will not always lead to an EHC plan. The information gathered during an EHC needs assessment may indicate ways in which the school, college or other provider can meet the child or young person’s needs without an EHC plan.

An Education, Health & Care Plan, EHC Plan or EHCP is a document which sets out the educational, health and social care needs of a child or young person, and specifies the support that is necessary to meet those needs, to secure the best possible outcomes for them across education, health and social care and, as they get older, prepare them for adulthood.

EHC plans should be forward-looking documents that help raise aspirations and outline the provision required to meet the child's assessed needs to support them in achieving their ambitions. EHC plans should specify how services will be delivered as part of a whole package and explain how best to achieve the outcomes sought across education, health and social care for the child or young person.

An EHC needs assessment will not always lead to an EHC plan. The information gathered during an EHC needs assessment may indicate ways in which the school, college or other provider can meet the child or young person’s needs without an EHC plan.

EHC plans must include the following sections:

• Section A: The views, interests and aspirations of the child and his or her parents or the young person.
• Section B: The child or young person’s special educational needs.
• Section C: The child or young person’s health needs which are related to their SEN.
• Section D: The child or young person’s social care needs which are related to their SEN or to a disability.
• Section E: The outcomes sought for the child or the young person. This should include outcomes for adult life. The EHC plan should also identify the arrangements for the setting of shorter term targets by the early years provider, school, college or other education or training provider.
• Section F: The special educational provision required by the child or the young person.
• Section G: Any health provision reasonably required by the learning difficulties or disabilities which result in the child or young person having SEN. Where an Individual Health Care Plan is made for them, that plan should be included.
• Section H1: Any social care provision which must be made for a child or young person under 18 resulting from section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970.
• Section H2: Any other social care provision reasonably required by the learning difficulties or disabilities which result in the child or young person having SEN. This will include any adult social care provision being provided to meet a young person’s eligible needs (through a statutory care and support plan) under the Care Act 2014.
• Section I: The name and type of the school, maintained nursery school, post-16 institution or other institution to be attended by the child or young person and the type of that institution (or, where the name of a school or other institution is not specified in the EHC plan, the type of school or other institution to be attended by the child or young person).
• Section J: Where there is a Personal Budget, the details of how the Personal Budget will support particular outcomes, the provision it will be used for including any flexibility in its usage and the arrangements for any direct payments for education, health and social care. The special educational needs and outcomes that are to be met by any direct payment must be specified.
• Section K: The advice and information gathered during the EHC needs assessment must be attached (in appendices). There should be a list of this advice and information.

In addition, where the child or young person is in or beyond Year 9, the EHC plan must include (in sections F, G, H1 or H2 as appropriate) the provision required by the child or young person to assist in preparation for adulthood and independent living, for example, support for finding employment, housing or for participation in society.

Child's view
Young person advice
One page profile template
Education Setting Advice & Request for Assessment Yr 8 & below
Education Setting Advice & Request for Asessment Yr 9 & above
Specialist Education Service Advice
Medical Health and Emotional Wellbeing Advice
Therapy Advice
Home and Community Life Advice

EHC plans should be used to actively monitor children and young people’s progress towards their outcomes and longer term aspirations. They must be reviewed by the local authority as a minimum every 12 months.

The first review must be held within 12 months of the date when the EHC plan was issued, and then within 12 months of any previous review, and the local authority’s decision following the review meeting must be notified to the child’s parent or the young person within four weeks of the review meeting (and within 12 months of the date of issue of the EHC plan or previous review).

Read more about Annual Reviews here. 

The Family Services Teams are part of the Inclusion Service at Suffolk County Council. They work to support children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and their families and the education settings they attend.

The teams:

• Ensure that assessments, including Education, Health and Care Needs Assessments, are accurate and delivered within statutory timescales

• Guide children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans and their families through their education and SEND journey

• Monitor the progress of children and young people with SEND in achieving outcomes from their Education, Health and Care Plans, to prepare them for adulthood, and offer guidance at times of transition

• Support children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans who are at risk of, or who have been permanently excluded

Find out how to contact your local Family Services team here.