EHCP
Education, Health and Care Plan: a legal document setting out support for pupils with significant special educational needs.
An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is a legally binding document that sets out the special educational, health and social-care support a child or young person needs.
EHCPs replaced the old Statement of Special Educational Needs in 2014. They cover children and young people aged 0 - 25 and are issued by the local authority after a formal EHC Needs Assessment.
An EHCP can:
- Name a specific school the local authority must place the child at
- Specify hours of one-to-one support, therapy or specialist provision
- Be reviewed annually and updated as needs change
Children with an EHCP have top priority in nearly every school’s admissions policy - typically above siblings and looked-after children. If your child has an EHCP and you want them to attend a specific school, the EHCP itself is the route, not the standard application form.
For pupils with significant SEND but no EHCP, schools must still meet their needs under the SEND Code of Practice using ordinary classroom support.