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Parents and young people have two months to register a SEN appeal with the Tribunal, from the date of the local authority sending the notice containing a decision which can be appealed, or one month from the date of a certificate which has been issued following mediation or the parent or young person being given mediation information, whichever is the later. In some cases parents and young people will not register the appeal within the two month limit. Where it is fair and just to do so, the Tribunal has the power to use its discretion to accept appeals outside the two month time limit.

The following conditions apply to appeals:

The parent or young person can appeal to the Tribunal when the EHC plan is initially finalised, following an amendment or a replacement of the plan
Appeals must be registered with the Tribunal within two months of the local authority sending a notice to the parent or young person of the decision about one of the matters that can be appealed to the Tribunal or within one month of a certificate being issued following mediation or the parent or young person being given mediation information
The right to appeal a refusal of an EHC needs assessment will be triggered only where the local authority has not carried out an assessment in the previous six months
When the parent or young person is appealing about a decision to cease to maintain the EHC plan the local authority has to maintain the plan until the Tribunal's decision is made

When appealing to the Tribunal, parents and young people must supply a copy of the decision that they are appealing against and the date when the local authority's decision was made, or the date of the mediation certificate. The parent or young person who is appealing (the appellant) will be required to give the reasons why they are appealing. The reasons do not have to be lengthy or written in legal language but should explain why the appellant disagrees with the decision. Parents and young people have to send all relevant documents, such as copies of assessments, to the Tribunal.

Once the appeal is registered, the local authority will be sent a copy of the papers filed and will be given a date by which they must respond and asked to provide details of witnesses - this will apply to all parties. The parties will also be told of the approximate hearing date.

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Health services for children and young people with SEN or disabilities provide early identification, assessment and diagnosis, intervention and review for children and young people with long-term conditions and disabilities. Services are delivered by health professionals such as occupational therapists, speech and language specialists, physiotherapists and psychologists. In addition, public health services for children ensure a whole population approach to health and wellbeing including preventative services such as immunisation for the whole population and targeted immunisation for the most vulnerable.

Health services support early identification of young children who may have SEN, though special neonatal screening programmes, and specialist health and developmental assessment where concerns have been raised. Community paediatricians in conjunction with other health professionals, particularly therapists, are often the first people to notify young children with SEN to local authorities. They provide diagnostic services and health reports for EHC needs assessments.

Health professionals advise education services on managing health conditions such as epilepsy and diabetes, and health technologies such as tube feeding, tracheostomy care and ventilation in schools. They are able to provide an on-going overview of health and well-being. They seek advice from paediatric specialists when necessary and facilitate training for educational staff.

Therapists have important and specific roles in supporting children and young people with SEN or disabilities, working directly with children and young people, advising and training education staff and setting programmes for implementation at home and in school.

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Local authorities must make arrangements for parents and young people to receive information about mediation so that they can take part in mediation if they so choose before a possible appeal to the Tribunal.

The mediation session should be arranged, in discussion with the parents or young people, at a place and a time which is convenient for the parties. The body (or bodies) arranging the mediation must inform the parent or young person of the date and place of the mediation at least 5 working days before the mediation unless the parent or young person consents to this period of time being reduced.

The local authority and health representative(s) should be be able to make decisions during the mediation session.

Parents or the young person may be accompanied by a friend, adviser or advocate and, in the case of parents, the child, where the parent requests this and the local authority has no reasonable objection. In cases where parents are the party to the mediation and it is not appropriate for the child to attend in person the mediator should take reasonable steps (within terms of time, difficulty, expense etc) to obtain the views of the child. Young people with learning difficulties, in particular, may need advocacy support when taking part in mediation

Mediation is an informal, non-legalistic, accessible and simple disagreement settlement process run by a trained third party and designed to bring two parties together to clarify the issues, and reach a resolution. The mediation company are completely independent. It is voluntary, however the Local Authority MUST attend a mediation session within 30 days of the mediation company informing them of the request. If the local authority is unable to arrange mediation in a case which involves a disagreement on a matter which can be appealed to the Tribunal within 30 days it must tell the mediator. The mediation adviser must then issue a certificate within three days.

A parent or young person may decide they want to go to mediation before any appeal they might make to the Tribunal. Parents and young people have the right to appeal to the Tribunal but are not able to register an appeal without a certificate from the mediation company. Where the parent or young person decides not to go to mediation during or following contact with the mediation adviser the adviser will issue a certificate, within three working days of the parent or young person telling them that they do not want to go to mediation, confirming that information has been provided. The certificate will enable the parent or young person to lodge their appeal, either within two months of the original decision being sent by the local authority or within one month of receiving the certificate whichever is the later.

The parent or young person does not have to contact a mediation adviser, if they solely want to go to appeal regarding the naming of a school, college or other institution (section I.) Dispute resolution can be pursued in this circumstance to try resolve this without the need of an appeal.

Once mediation is completed about a matter which can be appealed to the Tribunal the mediation adviser must issue a certificate to the parent or young person within three working days confirming that it has concluded.

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Where a child or young person has been assessed as having social care needs in relation to their SEN or disabilities, social care teams:

must secure social care provision under the Chronically Sick and Disabled Personas Act (CSDPA) 1970 which has been assessed as being necessary to support a child or young person's SEN and which is specified in their EHC Plan
should provide early years providers, schools and colleges with a contact for social care advice on children and young people with SEN and disabilities
must undertake reviews of children and young people with EHC Plans where there are social care needs
should make sure that for looked after children and care leavers the arrangements for assessing and meeting their needs across education, health and social care are coordinated effectively within the process of care and pathway planning, in order to avoid duplication and delay, to include in particular liaising with the Virtual School Head (VSH) for looked after children.

For social care provision specified in the plan, existing duties on social care services to assess and provide for the needs of disabled children and young people under the Children Act 1989 continue to apply. Where the local authority decides it is necessary to make provision for a disabled child or young person under 18 pursuant to Section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Person Act (CSDPA) 1970, the local authority must identify which provision is made under section 2 of the CSDPA. The local authority must specify that provision in section H1 of the EHC plan. It must secure that provision because under Section 2 of the CSDPA there is a duty to provide the services assessed by the local authority as being needed.

Where the young person is over 18, the care element of the EHC plan will usually be provided by adult services. Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities must meet eligible needs set out in an adult care and support plan. Local authorities should explain how the adult care and support system works, and support young people in making the transition to adult services. Local authorities should have in place arrangements to ensure that young people with social care needs have every opportunity to lead as independent a life as possible and that they are not disadvantaged by the move from children's to adult services.

However, where it will benefit a young person with an EHC plan, local authorities have the power to continue to provide children's services past a young person's 18th birthday for as long as is deemed necessary. This will enable the move to adult services to take place at a time that avoids other key changes in the young person's life such as the move from special school sixth form to college.

Local authorities should plan a smooth transition to the higher education (and, where applicable, to the new local authority area) before ceasing to maintain a young person's EHC plan. Once the young person's place has been confirmed at a higher education institution, the local authority must pass a copy of their EHC plan to the relevant person in that institution at the earliest opportunity, where they are asked to do so by the young person.

The local authority should also plan how social care support will be maintained, where the young person continues to require it, and whether this will continue to be provided by the home local authority or by the authority in the area they are moving to. This should include consideration of how the student will be supported if they have a dual location, for example, if they live close to the higher education institution during term time and at home during vacations.

For most young people, their home local authority will continue to provide their care and support but this will depend on the circumstances of their case. The Ordinary Residence guidance published by the Department of Health provides a number of examples to help local authorities in making these decisions. The guidance is available on the GOV.UK website and a link is given in the Reference section under Chapter 8. Under the Care Act 2014, young people have the right to request transition assessments for adult care that will enable them to see whether they are likely to have eligible needs that will be met by adult services once they turn 18. Local authorities should use these assessments to help plan for support that will be provided by the local authority while a young person is in higher education.

As with EHC plan development in general, transition assessments for adult care and support must involve the young person and anyone else they want to involve in the assessment. They must also include the outcomes, views and wishes that matter to the young person - much of which will already be set out in their EHC plan.

Assessments for adult care or support must consider:

current needs for care and support
whether the young person is likely to have needs for care and support after they turn 18 and is so, what those needs are likely to be and which are likely to be eligible needs

Local authorities can meet their statutory duties around transition assessment through an annual review of a young person's EHC plan that includes the above elements. Indeed, EHC plans must include provision to assist in preparing for adulthood from Year 9 (age 13 to 14).

The Tribunal will not take account of the fact that mediation has taken place, or has not been taken up, nor will it take into account the outcome of any mediation. Parents and young people will not be disadvantaged at the Tribunal because they have chosen not to go to mediation.

The Tribunal hears appeals against decisions made by the local authorities in England in relation to children's and young people's EHC needs assessments and EHC plans. It also hears disability discrimination claims against schools and against local authorities when the local authority is the responsible body for a school.

The Tribunal seeks to ensure that the process of appealing is as user-friendly as possible, and to avoid hearings that are overly legalistic or technical. It is the Tribunal's aim to ensure that a parent or young person should not need to engage legal representation when appealing a decision. Parents and young people may find it helpful to have support from a voluntary organisation or friend at a hearing.

Parents and young people can appeal to the Tribunal about:

a decision by a local authority not to carry out an EHC needs assessment or re-assessment
a decision by a local authority that it is not necessary to issue an EHC plan following an assessment
the description of a child or young person's SEN specified in an EHC plan, the special educational provision specified, the school or other institution or type of school or other institution (such as a mainstream school/college) specified in the plan or that no school or other institution is specified
an amendment to these elements of the EHC plan
a decision by a local authority not to amend an EHC plan following a review or re-assessment
a decision by a local authority to cease to maintain an EHC plan

The Tribunal does not hear appeals about Personal Budgets, but will hear appeals about the special educational provision to which a Personal Budget may apply.

Since April 2018, the Tribunal service can also make recommendations about Health and Social care issues. This was part of a National Trial, and due to its success will continue.

Useful Links

First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Appealing to the SEND Tribunal | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

Guidelines for parent carers looking for support with tribunals or disputes (councilfordisabledchildren.org.uk)

Appeals

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Education, Health and Care Plan

When can a request be made for assessment?

Who can make a request for assessment?

Disagreement Resolution

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Preparation for Adulthood

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Safeguarding

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Youth Offenders