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Our Local Offer has been developed and will be updated regularly to help you find information about local services, support, activities and events for children who have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

We have separated the Local Offer into a number of sections below, please click on the specific area for more information.

This is our new Local Offer and we welcome feedback to improve the site.

If you need this content in an alternative format or if you have a specific query you can contact us by:

Email: local.offer@newham.gov.uk

Telephone: 0203 373 2051, Mon - Fri , 10am - 2pm

We will try to respond to emails or voicemails within 2 working days.
Related Information Feedback from families and our plans to respond. Complaints, comments and compliments

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Our Local Offer has been developed and will be updated regularly to help you find information about local services, support, activities and events for children who have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We have separated the Local Offer into a number of sections below, please click on the specific area for more information.

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This is a guide to our services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities, from birth to 25 years old.

We develop our local offer with you (parents, carers, children, and young people with SEN and disabilities, and our partners) to meet your needs. It brings all the information on our SEN and disability services into one place so you can find it quickly and easily.

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Find out about our services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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0-25 SEND Local Offer | Family Information Service

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SEND Local Offer / Family Information Service

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An education, health and care ( EHC) plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support.

EHC plans identify educational, health and social needs and set out the additional support to meet those needs.

Requesting an EHC assessment

You can ask your local authority to carry out an assessment if you think your child needs an EHC plan.

A young person can request an assessment themselves if they're aged 16 to 25.

A request can also be made by anyone else who thinks an assessment may be necessary, including doctors, health visitors, teachers, parents and family friends.

If they decide to carry out an assessment you may be asked for:

any reports from your child's school, nursery or childminder

doctors' assessments of your child

a letter from you about your child's needs

The local authority will tell you within 16 weeks whether an EHC plan is going to be made for your child.

Creating an EHC plan

1. Your local authority will create a draft EHC plan and send you a copy.

2. You have at least 15 days to comment, including if you want to ask that your child goes to a specialist needs school or specialist college.

3. Your local authority has 20 weeks from the date they receive the request for the assessment to give you the final EHC plan.

Disagreeing with a decision

You can challenge your local authority about:

their decision to not carry out an assessment

their decision to not create an EHC plan

the special educational support in the EHC plan

the school named in the EHC plan

If you cannot resolve the problem with your local authority, you can appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal.

Personal budgets

You may be able to get a personal budget for your child if they have an EHC plan or have been told that they need one.

It allows you to have a say in how to spend the money on support for your child.

There are 3 ways you can use your personal budget. You can have:

direct payments made into your account - you buy and manage services yourself

an arrangement with your local authority or school where they hold the money for you but you still decide how to spend it (sometimes called 'notional arrangements')

third-party arrangements - you choose someone else to manage the money for you

You can have a combination of all 3 options.

Independent support for children of all ages

Independent supporters can help you and your child through the new SEN assessment process, including:

replacing a statement of special educational needs with a new EHC plan

moving a child from a learning difficulty assessment (LDA) to an EHC plan

You can find out how to get local support through:

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Children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)

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Children with special educational needs (SEN) can get the help they need to get an education - SEN support, education, health and care plans, SEN before September 2014

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This is a really useful site which takes you through the EHCP process.

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What is an EHCP?

An Educational Healthcare Plan (EHCP or EHC) is a legal document that sets out the education, healthcare and social needs of a child or a young person who requires extra support in school beyond what the school can provide. Previously, this was known as a "Statement of Special Educational Needs".

Children with an EHCP will usually be entitled to extra one-to-one support in school (though not necessarily full-time). These children will have outside agencies involved in their support, such as SEN teachers, behavioural experts or physiotherapists.

Who is an EHCP for?

An EHCP is for any child or young person with significant and complex Special Educational Needs or Disability (SEND). An EHCP is required when a child's needs cannot be met by the usual support available to them in their school or setting.

Many children with special needs receive support directly from their school without an EHCP. This support is general SEN support that comes from resources already available in the school. However, some children or young people's needs may be deemed significant and complex and require an EHCP assessment by the Local Authority (LA).

An EHCP is drawn up between the LA, Health and Social Care and the child's family (or directly with the young person if aged between 16 and 25). The purpose of an EHCP is to provide clear, structured support for any difficulties that the child or young person has. The EHCP will identify what a school must implement to help the child or young person and the outcomes necessary to achieve it. The EHCP will also set a clear timeframe during which the outcomes should be achieved and when they will be next reviewed. As it is legally binding, this means the LA must fund any extra help identified as necessary.

An EHCP can be a golden ticket when it comes to school admissions. In the bunfight of applications for reception and year 7, a child with an EHCP gets a priority place ahead of many other applicants. It even allows a parent to apply to schools for which they are out of catchment or otherwise don't meet the admissions criteria if the parent can show that this school has provision for their child's needs, which their local schools lack.

How can a parent apply for an EHCP?

The new SEND Code of Practice (2014) emphasises that parents are central to helping their children thrive and succeed at school. The parents and the teachers are all on the same side and work together to support the child.

So, in theory, a parent should be in close contact about what is working, what is not, and what else could be tried. In reality, this is often far from the truth. Communication between school and parents may be sporadic; you may not feel welcome, judged, or even consider that your school is failing your child.
The process for applying for an EHCP varies according to the LA but has some general requirements:

As the parent, you will initially be asked to request an EHC needs assessment (EHCna) to see if your child's needs can be met under their current school's SEN provision or whether an EHCP is necessary. Note that not all needs assessments will result in the provision of an EHCP.

The School SEN Coordinator (SENCO) will generally start the process for you. However, if your school is not proactive or disagrees with you, you can request an EHCna for your child directly from your LA. Young people aged 16-25 can request one directly from the LA website.

To qualify for an EHCP assessment, you must supply evidence of your child's academic attainment and rate of progress, and you must provide information about the nature, extent and context of their needs.

The LA must respond to your request for an assessment within six weeks, so please note the date you submit your request.

LAs routinely turn families away at this stage, often stating that they will only assess children once they have a report from an educational psychologist or a diagnosis. They may ask you to participate in information-gathering about your child. This is your chance to collate evidence and document your child's difficulties, strengths and aspirations. There is an opportunity for parents to present their views and hopes.

A mum recently through the EHCP application advises families to "stick to their guns and, if necessary, move straight to an appeal." An appeal, despite the name, is only a paper exercise, and more than 90% of families who go on to appeal will go on to win their case. "I was being called by my son's mainstream school, on a near-daily basis, about problems they were having with his autistic behaviours, yet we were turned down when we applied for an EHCP," she says. "I thought that was the end of the line, but luckily, we got some advice and appealed, and this time they accepted it."

Once the LA has agreed to an EHC assessment, they will begin to gather information from parents and all education professionals, doctors, and therapists involved in the child's care. Before a final draft of the EHCP is agreed upon, the family will be invited to a Support and Outcomes Plan session.

Ensure that a review date is set for the EHCP and determine who is responsible for it. For young children, the EHCP may need updating every few months; for older children, most EHCPS will require an annual review.

Parents can be upset by the sometimes depressing picture that an EHCP presents of their child. "You sometimes have to grit your teeth. It can be horrible to read several professional reports describing your child in negative terms. Still, it sometimes is necessary to get the right help for them." says a father.

From the initial agreement to assess through to the final draft of the EHCP, it can take 20 weeks, though sometimes a little longer.

Tips on applying for an EHCP

Whatever your situation, here are some guidelines that will help you get off to a good start:

Find out how your school thinks your child is doing:

First of all, you should speak to your child's headteacher and the school SENCO. Ask them what level of support the school already provides, if any, e.g. School Action or School Action Plus. Ask if your child is on the school SEN register.

Ask the school to provide you with a record of the educational and behavioural interventions they have used and comments about how they have worked or not. Find out who has delivered the intervention, if you don't already know, over what period, how the intervention has been monitored for progress and whether your child has achieved their target. Get concrete evidence that whatever has been planned has been completed. Ensure these outcomes have been achieved reliably and not just hit once on a lucky day. This will give you a better understanding of what your child is currently achieving, and you should be able to compare it with the average expected level for a child of their age.

Collect together any reports or tests your child has ever had, including exam results, school reports, referrals to Paediatricians, Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language Therapists, Educational Psychologists, etc.

Create a file and organise all of this in chronological order. You are building up the evidence and a profile of your child because you will need to prove that they need the help you say they do.

Scan all your letters into your computer so you never lose them and you can e-mail or print them whenever you need them. Never send original documents to anyone.

Find out what levels your child should be achieving:

Your Local Authority (LA) will likely argue that just because your child is achieving below the average does not mean they have any SEN or require an EHCP.

Children in each school class have a broad spectrum of abilities and achievements according to their potential. Many children will never be top of their class, but that doesn't mean they have SEN.

So, how do you show that your child has a more significant potential than their current achievements? The obvious way is to secure an Educational Psychology assessment for them. Each LA has its register of Educational Psychologists. The new SEND Code of Practice says that external experts should be called in at an early stage when an SEN is suspected. You should ask your SENCO to arrange one so that you can, as a team, get a good idea of the current picture. ?You may also need to consider a Speech and Language assessment or an Occupational Therapy assessment if this is indicated.

If possible, building and maintaining a positive relationship with your school SENCO and class teacher is essential. If an Ed Psych assessment is not forthcoming, you could consider a private assessment, usually at great expense. However, these can be regarded with suspicion by the LA, who may feel the report is biased towards the paying parent's views.

Get a medical diagnosis for your child, if applicable:

Parents often don't like labelling their children, but a diagnosis is important if you are looking for LA support. If your son or daughter has dyslexia, dyscalculia, ASD, ADHD, or any other hidden disability, you will need to be able to evidence this, not just give your opinion.

We would advise you to take your child to your GP and ask them to refer your child to a paediatrician, child psychiatrist, or the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS). A precise medical diagnosis is hard to ignore.

You can book an appointment with a paediatrician or child psychiatrist privately for a diagnosis if you can afford the significant fees.

If your child has an undiagnosed condition, then focus your case on the symptoms that they have. You may also draw parallels with general conditions for some of their symptoms, e.g., posture, visual difficulties, medication needs, attention difficulties, sensory issues, accessibility requirements etc.

Take time to prepare your case:

Once you have all the evidence and information you need, contact your LA and work through their application process, keeping all of their policies together. Make it work for you. Use evidence to demonstrate that your child isn't getting what they should be. When you send in your EHCP submission, you don't need to use their application form if you don't want to. Ensure you write all you can relevant to your case and provide reports to back them up. This will take many redrafts and a lot of time. You may feel you need help; if so, don't hesitate to ask.

Undoubtedly, this process can be stressful and often depressing, and many parents will give up along the way.

Cases are self-evident and easier to prove if your child has visible and significant needs. If your child has a hidden disability, then the issue is much more challenging to prove. In these cases, only the most determined parents will get what they want, and many families will give up during the process. Remember, you are your child's greatest asset and best advocate. Don't give up.

Get help:

Look at your Local Authority website and search under "Local Offer" for further and specific details of the process and policies set out in your region.

When you apply for an EHCP assessment, you should be offered and assigned an Independent Supporter. You don't have to use one, but they're free and should support you through the process.

What does an EHCP include?

An EHCP will include 12 sections of crucial information, which include:

(A) The views, the interests and aspirations of the child or young person

(B) The child's or young person's Special Educational Needs

(C) The health needs related to the child's or young person's SEN or disability

(D) The social care needs related to the child's or young person's SEN or disability

(E) The planned outcomes for the child or young person

(F) The provision for the needs mentioned in Section B

(G) Any health provision

(H1) Any social care provision that must be made for a child or young person

(H2) Any social care provision related to a child's SEN or a disability

(I) The name/type of school or setting

(J) Details of any personal budget

(K) Any advice and information from the EHC assessment

Note, if a young person is in or beyond Year 9, the EHCP must also set out the provision for the young person in preparing for adulthood and independent living.

How long does an EHCP last?

The EHCP will be reviewed once every year by the Local Authority. The Annual Review Meeting involves all the agencies involved with a child or young person, including the young person. This meeting will review the progress towards the outcomes in the EHCP, discuss any changes in need or new needs that may be present, and give everybody involved with the child a chance to share their views, feelings and wishes about their education, health and overall care.

An EHCP should support a child or young person from birth up to 25, helping them access school, further education, training, and further support in the workplace.

Getting the most from your EHCP's personal budget

If your child has an EHCP (or has been told they need one), you may be able to control their personal budget. This will give you much more say in how to spend the money to support your child.

There are three ways you can organise your personal budget:

You can have direct payments into your personal bank account so that you can buy and manage services yourself

You can have an arrangement with your school or LA, where they hold the money for you, but you can still decide how to spend it (called 'notional arrangements')

You can agree with a third-party arrangement where you can choose someone else to manage the money for you.

We would recommend that any parent aims to secure the first of these three options so that they can have complete control of their budget and can direct this all to their own child rather than letting a school or other provider use this to provide more general SEN support for other children in that setting.

Finding an SEN tutor

Whether you succeed or not in securing an EHCP with funding, you may wish to consider finding your own SEN tutor.

You should look for a qualified and experienced SENCO or SEN teacher who is a subject specialist and up-to-date with the latest techniques and developments in supporting learners with Special Educational Needs.

Teachers To Your Home provides qualified SEN teachers across the UK to support families seeking SEN tuition. You can view or contact relevant and available SEN teachers here:

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Educational Health Care Plan | EHCP Guide | Teachers To Your Home

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An Educational Healthcare Plan (EHCP or EHC) is a legal document that sets out the education, healthcare and social needs of a child who requires extra support in school.

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The Zones of Regulation is an internationally renowned intervention which helps children manage their emotions.

Children learn to identify emotions, recognise events that might make them move to a different zone and use the tools they have learnt to help them remain or move to a particular zone to help them regulate how they are feeling.

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Mr Williams hosts our handwriting interventions. Please contact the Inclusion Hub if you feel a student could benefit from handwriting support.

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Talkabout is a complete programme for developing self-esteem, social and friendship skills. Ms Lewis runs this session which focusses on providing key support to vulnerable students.

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Playing with LEGO in a therapy setting promotes social interaction, turn-taking skills, sharing, collaborative problem-solving and the learning of concepts. Our students also LOVE it! Feel free to pop by to witness a session.

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Keep an eye out for this intervention coming soon to Bobby Moore!

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Ms Amoatin runs Lexia for students with literacy difficulties. Please complete the referral form if you think a student could benefit.

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Harriet works at Bobby Moore Secondary on Mondays- Wednesdays.

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New to Bobby Moore Academy... Touch Typing Intervention

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New to Bobby Moore Academy... Touch Typing Intervention

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As of July 2024, we will be introducing a touch typing program for our learners who will require laptops to access their work and examinations.

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Please find attached JCQ Guidance on Access Arrangements.

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Find some common FAQ's here. Don't forget to reach out to the Inclusion Department should you have any further questions.

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Have you been invited to an Annual Review? Find all the information you need attached.

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12 mins read

This advice applies in England only. Read information for families in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales.
Your local authority must review your child's Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan at least once a year. This is to look at how your child is progressing and to ensure that the plan is kept up to date. This process is known as the annual review.
What is an annual review?

Your local authority must review your child's Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan at least once a year. This is to look at how your child is progressing and to ensure that the plan is kept up to date. This process is known as the annual review.

The annual review is a formal process that must follow certain legal requirements. It includes a meeting, but this is not the only part of the process. The responsibility for carrying out annual reviews lies with the local authority, but in most cases the local authority delegates organisation of the review meeting to your child's school.

Your child's first annual review must take place within 12 months of their plan being first made. After that, each review should take place within 12 months of the previous review.

Watch an animation from our friends at the Council for Disabled Children (CDC) about EHC plan annual reviews

Understanding the annual review process

We'll look first at what happens during a review and then explain how you can prepare for the review meeting.

The annual review process can be broken down into several steps.

Local authority notifies the school

Each term, the local authority must notify schools which of their pupils' EHC plans it needs to be review in the coming term.

Invitation to the annual review meeting

The next stage is for the school to organise a meeting between people involved in your child's education.

The school must invite the following people to the meeting:

The child's parent(s) or the young person themselves if they are over 16.

The headteacher of the school.

Someone from the local authority special educational needs (SEN) department.

Someone from the local authority social services department.

A health professional.

The school may also invite other people involved in supporting your child, for example a teaching assistant, a speech and language therapist, or a specialist advisory teacher. In practice, who attends will depend very much on your child's needs and circumstances.

You must have at least two weeks' notice of the date of the review meeting.

The school will also ask the people they invite to send in written advice (reports) in advance. Any reports must be circulated to everyone invited at least two weeks before the meeting. This will give you time to prepare. See the section below on preparing for the review meeting

The review meeting

The purpose of the meeting is to gather everyone's opinion about how your child is being supported and to make recommendations about any changes needed to the EHC plan. The meeting must consider the following:

Progress made towards achieving the outcomes in the EHC plan.

For young people in year 9 and above, provision required to help the young person move into adulthood.

And the guidance suggests it should also consider:

The effectiveness of the special educational provision specified in the EHC plan.

The effectiveness of the health and social care provision in achieving progress towards outcomes in the EHC plan.

Whether your child still needs an EHC plan.

Any changes needed to the EHC plan, for example more or different help or a change of school.

The meeting should also set interim targets for the following year.

The review report

Following the meeting, the headteacher must compile a review report with recommendations for any changes to the EHC plan. They must send a copy of the report to the local authority within two weeks of the meeting, and to all those invited to the meeting, including the parent.

The report must include all the evidence gathered as part of the review process. That would include your parental views. As well as the headteacher's recommendation, the report should record any differences of opinion.

The local authority's decision

Within four weeks of the review meeting, the local authority must make a decision about the recommendations in the review report and notify the parent of this. The decision might be:

To cease (end) the plan.

To leave the plan as it is.

To make amendments (changes) to the plan.

If the local authority decides to make changes to the plan, it must send you a draft amended plan. This sets out the changes it proposes to make and includes any evidence it is relying on to make this decision. A recent legal case has clarified that, if the local authority decides to amend the plan, the draft amended plan must also arrive with the parent within four weeks of the meeting.

You then have 15 days to give your views on the proposed changes. If you want a change of school, you can express your preference at this point.

The local authority then has a further eight weeks to finalise the plan.

The local authority's written decision concludes the review process.

Not happy with the outcome of the annual review?

If you disagree with the local authority's decision at the final step of the review, you have a right to go to mediation and/or appeal to the First-Tier Tribunal. This may be the case if:

The local authority proposes to cease the EHC plan and you want it to continue.

The local authority is leaving the plan as it is and you want changes.

The local authority has made changes that you disagree with.

For more information on what to do next, see our page on Tribunal appeals.

Preparing for the review

It is important to prepare as well as you can. The annual review is your chance to make sure your child's EHC plan is fit for purpose. It may be that all is going well and the plan only needs minor tweaks. Or it could be that the school can no longer meet your child's needs and you are looking for a different school.

Before the meeting

Think about:

Is there anyone that you would like to come with you to the meeting or to send in a report? The school or local authority does not have to invite anyone you request, but they must take account of your wishes, views and feelings, as well those of your child.

Do you have any other reports or evidence that you would like to send in? These might be from private practitioners working with your child or from people outside the education setting, such as a youth club leader or sports coach.

How is your child going to be involved in the review? There is a duty on the local authority to consult your child. Some children and young people want to give their views in person and attend all or part of the meeting. Others find this overwhelming and would prefer to write, draw or talk to a trusted person.

Do you want anyone to go with you to take notes? This could be a partner, friend or relative or someone from the local SENDIASS service or another support organisation.

Gathering your views

The local authority or school organising the review meeting will ask you to send your views in advance. They may send you a form to fill in, but you don't have to be limited by this.

Think about the past year and what has gone well, or not so well, in your child's education. Has your child met any targets that were set at their last review? How is your child doing both academically and socially? If there have been any particular problems at school, for example, behaviour, bullying, attendance, or anxiety, describe these as well. If you need to ask any questions about your child's progress or support at school, make a note of these.

You should have received copies of any written reports that professionals have contributed to the annual review. Go through all these reports and make a note of anything you would like to discuss at the meeting. Do you agree with the views others have expressed about your child and the support they are receiving? Do the reports make any recommendations for changes to your child's support?

Next, go through your child's EHC plan carefully. Look particularly closely at the education sections B, F and I, as well as the outcomes in section E. Our page on EHC plans explains the different sections in more detail. The annual review is your chance to say if you think the EHC plan is still correct or if it needs any changes. In particular:

Section B - special educational needs.

This should be an accurate description of how your child learns and what they can and cannot do. Does it still describe your child as you know them? If not, make a list of what you think should be taken out, changed, or added to this part of the EHC Plan.

Section F - Special educational provision

This describes all the extra help your child must get, for example 1-1 support from a teaching assistant, or weekly therapy. Is it clear how much and what kind of help your child must receive? Is it clear how often this help should be given and who should be giving it? Do you think your child's needs have changed in the past year? Do you think they need more help, or a different kind of help?

Section I - education placement

Are you happy with the school placement or do you think your child should go to a different kind of school or college? If so, you can say what you would prefer.

Section E - outcomes

How is your child progressing towards the outcomes set in section E? Do these need revising because your child has met them or they are no longer appropriate?

Other sections

Depending on your child's needs, you may also want to ask for changes to the health or social care sections of the EHC plan. If that is the case, it is sensible to ask to involve relevant professionals in the review.

The annual review is also a chance to ask for a personal budget if you didn't do this when the EHC plan was first made. See our page on personal budgets for more information.

Asking for changes outside the annual review

What can you do if you have concerns about your child's EHC plan but it's a while until the next annual review?

The first step is to check the plan. You may have a good plan but the school is not providing what is specified. Alternatively the plan may be inadequate or the school no longer suitable.

Good, detailed plan but support not given

In this case the first step would be to raise your concerns through a meeting with the SENCO and give the school a chance to put things right. Be as specific as you can about what is not being provided, and put your concerns in writing. Ask to meet again in, say, another month.

If the help in the plan is still not being provided, the next step is to go back to your local authority. The local authority has a legal duty to secure the special educational provision in the EHC plan. You can make a formal complaint to the local authority if this isn't happening.

Inadequate plan or change of school needed

In this case you have a couple of different options.

Reassessment

You can ask the local authority for a full reassessment. This takes the same form as and has similar timescales to the original EHC needs assessment. This won't be a quick fix but may be worthwhile if your child's needs or circumstances have changed substantially. If you put in a request for reassessment and the local authority turns it down, you have the right to mediation and/or appeal to the First-Tier Tribunal.

Emergency/interim review

If you feel that things have reached a crisis point and the educational placement is at risk of breaking down, you can ask the local authority to arrange an emergency review. This should always be considered where a child is at risk of permanent exclusion.

Any such review is at the discretion of the local authority, and there is no legal duty on them to arrange it. It will help if you can get the school's backing, for example if it is no longer a suitable placement. If you are requesting an emergency review, ask the local authority to run it as an annual review with the same timescales. That will then trigger appeal rights if you are not happy with the outcome.

Call our helpline

Any questions about support at school? How to get an EHC plan? What kind of school is best for my child? Call our freephone helpline on 0808 808 3555 and talk to one of our education advisers.

Information for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales

Read our information about education in Wales.

Find out about the system of support for children with special educational needs in Northern Ireland on the NI Education Authority website or Senac (special educational needs advice centre).

In Scotland, the system of support for children with additional support needs is called additional support for learning. You can read more about it on the Enquire website.

Related information

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Your local authority must review your child's EHC plan at least once a year. This process is known as the annual review.

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Upcoming Events

Summer term 2023: Parent Led Information Marketplace

Arranged by the Tower Hamlets Independent SEND Parent and Carer Forum and tower Hamlets Parent and Carer Council.

Saturday, 17th June, 10am - 2pm, St Pauls Bow Common

Includes limited 10 minute slots for 'bitesize' SEND advice. Find out more on the June 2023 Information Marketplace Event Page!

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(IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

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Once a child or young person has an , the local authority (LA) must ensure the support set out in the plan is made for them.

Normally, the LA will do this by providing the necessary funding to your child's school or college, in order for them to deliver the educational support needed, and by arranging any external therapies or other provision that may be specified. However, it is also possible for the LA to consider making a payment to the parent, the young person, or another nominated person so that you can organise the provision yourself. This is called a direct payment. In order for you to request a direct payment, the LA must first identify a personal budget.

Remember, the purpose of a personal budget or direct payment is to allow you to arrange provision that is specified in Section F of the EHC plan yourself. It is not a pot of money for 'extras' like home tuition, after-school activities, additional therapies or anything else that is not specified in Section F.

What is a personal budget?

The personal budget is the notional amount of money that would be needed to cover the cost of making the special educational provision specified in the EHC plan. You cannot have a personal budget for education unless you have an EHC plan. Information about the availability of personal budgets must be contained in your LA's local offer .

Your LA must consider identifying a personal budget for educational provision if you request it when your LA issues a draft EHC plan following an EHC needs assessment or when it is reviewing an EHC plan . It is not legally required to consider identifying a personal budget for educational provision at other times.

Sometimes, your LA can refuse to identify a personal budget. It may do so when the special educational provision is being provided as part of a larger budget (for example, a contract with the NHS to provide all speech and language therapy or occupational therapy) and the LA can't separate out or 'disaggregate' the personal budget for your child from that overall larger budget.

How can I get a direct payment?

If you do request a personal budget from your LA, you can at the same time ask it to identify which elements or parts of the personal budget you could then receive as a direct payment. This is an actual amount of money that you would receive so that you could commission or arrange the provision in the EHC plan yourself. The direct payment must be enough to cover the cost of arranging the provision.

Your LA can refuse to make a direct payment if it thinks the person receiving the payments would not be capable of managing the money, or if it thinks the money would be used in an inappropriate way. It can also refuse to make a direct payment where this would negatively impact other services provided by the LA, or if it would not be an efficient use of resources.

Where the provision proposed to be replaced by a direct payment takes place in a school or college setting, the consent of the head teacher or principal is required. If they do not consent then the LA will be unable to make a direct payment.

If the LA refuses to identify a personal budget or make a direct payment, you cannot appeal against that decision but you can ask for it to be reviewed.

Where can I find out more?

Detailed information about personal budgets and direct payments are contained in Chapter 9 of the SEN and Disability Code of Practice. The law relating to direct payments and personal budgets is set out in the Special Educational Needs (Personal Budgets) Regulations 2014, as amended by the Special Educational Needs (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2014.

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Once a child or young person has an EHC plan, the local authority must ensure the support set out in the plan is made for the child or young person

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CAMHS

Mental health conditions are problems such as depression, anxiety and eating disorders. Dealing with these problems can be hard so it is important that you get the support you need.

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) provides outpatient assessments, support and treatment for children and young people up to the age of 18 experiencing moderate to severe mental health problems.

The service works to provide them with a greater knowledge of their condition and improve coping techniques.

We provide help to children and to the wider family, including those with living with foster parents, adopted children and young people living in children's homes. The service may see children and adolescents on their own, with their parents or with their family, and may also see parents on their own.

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CAMHS | East London NHS Foundation Trust

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Mental health conditions are problems such as depression, anxiety and eating disorders. Dealing with these problems can be hard so it is important that you get the support you need

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Kooth is your online mental wellbeing community. Access free, safe and anonymous

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Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 Transition Guidance

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16 mins read

The information on this page is for families in England only.
Read information for families in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales.

The system of support for SEN places particular importance on helping children and young people prepare for their future. Under the SEN system, a child becomes a young person on the last Friday in June after they turn 16.
Your child can legally leave school at the end of the school year in which they turn 16 (normally the end of year 11). However, all young people must be in some kind of education or training until the age of 18. This can be combined with paid or voluntary work.
Support in preparing for adulthood

All young people need guidance to prepare for their future. A young person with special educational needs (SEN) may face additional challenges to achieving their goals. These include lack of information about options, low expectations about what is achievable, and difficulty in making their views heard. So they may need extra support as they move on from school to college, or from education into adult life.

The system of support for SEN places particular importance on helping children and young people prepare for their future. This is referred to in the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice 2015 as "Preparing for Adulthood".

Preparing for adulthood means preparing for:

Higher education and/or employment.

Independent living.

Participating in society: friendships and contributing to the local community.

Being as healthy as possible in later life.

Preparation should start early - long before your child becomes an adult.

Schools have a legal duty to provide impartial careers advice to all young people from at least Year 8 (13-14 years of age). This must be tailored to the needs of pupils with SEND. Schools should work with employers, housing agencies, disability organisations and arts and sports groups to help children understand what their options are as they get older.

If your child has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan, the Year 9 annual review of their plan, and every review after that, must include a focus on preparing for adulthood. This means there should be targets in the EHC plan that will help your child to achieve steps towards the four preparing for adulthood outcomes above. They should be updated as your child progresses.

For more about school duties to support pupils with SEN, see our webpage on Extra support in mainstream school.

Young people's rights at 16

Under the SEN system, a child becomes a young person on the last Friday in June after they turn 16. All children and young people have the right to have their views taken into consideration about decisions that affect them.

A young person has rights separate from their parents. A young person can:

Ask for an EHC needs assessment.

Make decisions about the support in their EHC plan.

Ask for a personal budget.

Appeal directly to tribunal about a decision relating to an EHC assessment or a plan.

It is assumed that a young person has this right unless they lack the mental capacity to make a specific decision. A person has mental capacity if they can:

Understand the information given to them.

Remember it.

Use and weigh up the information to make a decision.

Communicate their decision.

Young people must have access to independent support to make decisions and communicate their views, if they want this.

If your son or daughter does not have the mental capacity to make a particular decision about their education, the expectation is that you as their parent will do this on their behalf, except where the courts have appointed a deputy.

You can continue to support your son or daughter if they are happy for you to do this. Even if your son or daughter can make some choices independently, they may still need your help in other ways. For example, they might need support with form filling or exploring course options.

Making increasingly complex choices is a skill that children have to learn like any other. This should be part of your son or daughter's preparation for moving into adult life from the earliest years.

What are the options after my child turns 16?

Your child can legally leave school at the end of the school year in which they turn 16 (normally the end of year 11). However, all young people must be in some kind of education or training until the age of 18. They can combine this with paid or voluntary work.

Staying at school

Your child may move into the sixth form of their mainstream or special school or move to another school. Staying in a school offers structure and familiarity. It might help your child if they're not yet ready to move on to a different type of setting.

In school, your child may do a programme of study leading to academic or vocational qualifications, from entry level to GCSEs, BTECs and A levels. Although they'll be doing different courses, and the 6 th form set up may operate differently from the lower school, your child will continue to receive extra help for their SEN if they need it.

Mainstream further education (FE) colleges

Mainstream colleges offer a wide range of courses to suit all levels of learning. For example:

Academic courses (A Levels, GCSE's).

Vocational courses (such as BTECS).

"Stepping stone" courses in Maths and English.

Courses which combine study with on- the- job training or work experience.

"Life skills" courses to help young people prepare for adult life, work and participating in the community.

You and your son or daughter should receive advice about suitable courses in good time to make the right decision. As well as getting information from the school, also check the post-16 section of your local authority's Local Offer site. The National Careers Service might also be useful.

This discussion should be part of their annual review if they have an EHC plan. Your child's needs and wishes are important. They should not be shoe-horned into a course that doesn't match their interests or abilities.

Once your child has chosen a suitable college, their school should work with the new setting to ensure a smooth transition into the next stage of their study.

What support is available at college?

Mainstream further education (FE) colleges support students with special educational needs in a similar way to schools. Colleges should not refuse to admit a young person who has SEN but doesn't have an EHC plan.

Students with SEN who do not need EHC plans receive help through SEN support. This includes following the special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0-25 years. There should be a named person in overall charge of SEN provision, similar to the school special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). And the college must make sure that students with SEN know who they can go to for help.

A SEN support plan should detail the extra help your child receives. The college should involve your child in planning their support and keep records of the progress they make. This should be reviewed at least three times a year with your child and where appropriate, your family. Colleges should refer to specialist services for further advice and support, for example from education psychologists.

Young people who need more help than a mainstream FE college could normally provide will need an EHC plan.

Many young people with SEN will also be disabled. Under the Equality Act 2010, mainstream FE colleges must do everything they reasonably can to remove all barriers to learning for disabled students.

Support might include:

Accessible information, like symbol-based materials.

Mentoring.

Assistive technology, specialist tuition or note-takers.

One-to-one and small group learning support.

Access to therapies.

Housing/independent living training.

Specialist further education (FE) colleges

A specialist further education college provides education for young people with SEN only. Some have residential facilities and provide what is commonly called a "waking day" or "24-hour" curriculum. Some specialist colleges help their students to attend courses in mainstream colleges.

Your son or daughter would need an EHC plan to go to a specialist college. You or your child can ask the local authority to name a specialist college in their EHC plan following the annual review. The local authority may refuse your request on the grounds of cost. And it may be necessary to show that there are no alternative cheaper education options available.

For more about asking for a specialist college in an EHC plan, see our webpage Applying for a school place.

Other education and training options

Education does not have to be all classroom based learning in a school or college. There are also training options, which give a young person the chance to experience a workplace and develop the skills they will need in a particular job while continuing to study.

Apprenticeships

A programme that combines study towards qualifications with paid-on-the-job training. Apprenticeships are open to young people over 16 with or without EHC plans. They can lead to qualifications from GCSE level up to degree or diploma level.

Apprenticeship providers receive funding for all young people, and the amount is more for a young person with an EHC plan.

You can search for an apprenticeship at https://www.gov.uk/apprenticeships-guide

Traineeships

This is a programme that helps young people gain skills to get a job or apprenticeship. It includes work experience and study. Traineeships are unpaid and usually last for six months or less.

The programme is aimed at young people between 16-24, with or without an EHC plan, who have qualifications below level 3. Young people who do not have GCSE grade C or above in Maths and English will need to work towards this. You can search for a traineeship at gov.uk/find-traineeship. More information on traineeships should be available from your local FE college or the National Careers Service.

Supported internship

This is a workplace training and study programme open to young people with EHC plans aged between 16- 24. It is unpaid, based mainly at an employer and lasts for at least six months. The aim is to enable the intern to take up paid employment at the end of the internship, which could be with the same employer.

The intern follows a personalised programme. This includes on-the-job training and support from a work coach. It could also include studying for qualifications such as Maths and English, if appropriate.

A young person would usually need to apply to a supported internship through an FE college. The college will have links with suitable employers who can offer placements.

See this NDTI webinar on supported internships.

Individually-tailored education

Education does not have to lead to qualifications or employment. It isn't necessary for your son or daughter to be studying for a certain number of hours, be on an accredited course, or progressing towards formal qualifications. And a young person can still have an EHC plan without these, as long as they are doing some form of education or training.

Education has a wide meaning here. It can include small steps in progress towards learning a particular skill, such as communication.

Young people over 16 are not entitled to education across five days a week. Many college courses are part time, for example three days a week. However, if your son or daughter has an EHC plan, the local authority should consider whether support across five days a week might better meet their needs.

This does not have to be at one provider. Education for young people can include a mixture of college-based learning and other activities, such as work experience, volunteering, independent travel training, managing money or communication and self- help skills. Adult social care may fund some of this support.

Some young people are not able to access formal settings, such as a college. Alternative provision, such as home-based tuition or therapy, may be appropriate. This might be if your son or daughter has been out of formal education for a long time and would struggle to return to a college setting, or if they have very severe and complex needs.

The local authority might fund such provision for a young person with an EHC plan if they agree this is the only way to meet their special educational needs.

Getting an individual package in place can be challenging. The local authority should provide support and advice, including advice about personal budgets if appropriate. Please see our webpage on Personal budgets in England for more information.

Transport post-16

Free help with transport to education is not an automatic right for disabled young people.

The local authority must publish an annual transport policy statement setting out travel arrangements for young people in their area to get to education, including those with SEND.

See our post-16 school transport webpage for more information.

Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans after 16

If your child has an EHC plan, it does not have to end when they leave school. Their plan can continue up to the age of 25, as long as they still have SEN and stay in some kind of education or training. See our webpage on when an EHC plan comes to an end.

If your child never had an EHC plan but you think they may need one, you or your child themselves can ask the local authority to carry out an EHC needs assessment to decide if they need one.

Transition to adult health and social care services for children with EHC plans

If your son or daughter needs ongoing health or social care support, at some point they will move from child to adult services. This is likely to be around age 18. It could happen at a younger or older age depending on where you live and the professionals involved in their care.

For children with EHC plans, the local authority has a legal duty to work together with other services to ensure that all parties are coordinating education, health and social care support.

The National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) has produced guidance on transition from child to adult health and social care services. The local authority should follow this unless there is very good reason not to. The guidance states that transition planning should start at age 13-14 or at whatever point your child enters the service.

Transition planning should be part of the annual review of your son or daughter's EHC plan. It is a legal requirement that a health and a social care professional are invited to all annual review meetings. A named worker should be identified. This person should take the lead in coordinating your child's care and support before, during and after transfer to adult services. Your child should meet a practitioner from each adult service before they transfer.

Social care

Your son or daughter may need social care support as an adult, whether or not they have been getting this support already. See our page on moving into adult services.

If your child has an EHC plan, part H2 must include any support provided under the Care Act 2014. If your son or daughter has both education and social care needs, a residential placement may be the most suitable setting. Funding for the placement may come from both social care and education.

Health

If your son or daughter has health needs ,they may have been under the care of a paediatrician as a child. This can continue after 18, but at some point they will need to transfer to adult health teams.

See our page on moving into adult health services.

Beyond 18

University

Your son or daughter may progress to a higher education course (degree level) at university if they achieve the required qualifications.

An EHC plan automatically ends once a young person moves into higher education. However, extra support is still available. Universities have duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for disabled students. This can include support such as flexible seminar times, support for study skills or access to specialist computer software.

Students with higher needs may qualify for a Disabled Students' Allowance to fund specific help such as note takers, sign language interpreters or computer equipment.

Other settings

Once a young person is 18, they are normally classed as an adult learner. In most cases, young people cannot stay on at a school beyond 19. Schools are not legally set up to provide education for adult learners, as colleges are.

In exceptional cases, a young person may be able stay on at their school in order to finish a course started before their 18th birthday. This will depend on individual circumstances, and you'll need to be discuss this with the school and local authority.

Some special schools have developed separate further education provision for 19-25 year olds.

If your son or daughter moves on to a social care setting, for example an adult residential or day care setting, they may be able to keep their EHC plan if they still receive some education.

Tuition fees

Tuition is free for 16-18 year olds. Further education settings receive funding to meet the cost of additional support and reasonable adjustments to all learners with SEND.

Young people over 19 without EHC plans can be charged tuition fees, depending on the type and level of course they're studying. Learners on certain benefits may be exempt: check the college's fee remission policy. Certain courses may be free, for example basic maths, English or employment skills, or a first GCSE or A level course. Colleges and training providers can also help with course fees at their discretion.

Young people aged 19-25 with an EHC plan receive free tuition, as long as the course meets the outcomes in their EHC plan.

Information for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales

Read our information about education in Wales.

Find out about the system of support for children with special educational needs in Northern Ireland on the NI Education Authority website or Senac (special educational needs advice centre).

In Scotland, the system of support for children with additional support needs is called additional support for learning. You can read more about it on the Enquire website.

Related information

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Education after 16 years for young people with special educational needs (SEN), find out more about the transition plan and whether your child's statement of special educational needs is still valid.

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(IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

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Mediation is a less formal way of trying to settle the dispute between you and the LA (and/or the health authority, known as the clinical commissioning group (CCG)). It involves a meeting between you, the LA and/or CCG and an independent mediator, who will try to help you reach agreement on the points of dispute. The mediation may also be attended by other relevant parties such as representatives from the child or young person's school or college. It is free of charge.

In most cases you will need a mediation certificate before you can appeal. You can get this in two ways:

Undertake mediation, and if it does not settle all of the points in dispute, you will be issued with a certificate confirming you took part in mediation; or

Speak to a mediation advisor, and you will be issued with a certificate confirming you have been told about your right to mediate but you do not want to do so.

If you do not wish to mediate, you will need to ring the number the LA gives you on their decision letter (there should be alternatives if you cannot use a phone) and talk to a mediation adviser. They will tell you more about how mediation works, and if you are not interested you can simply explain that you do not want to mediate. They will then provide a certificate. If you have had a lot of discussions already with your LA you may feel mediation would be of little use and you want to save time, get your certificate, and appeal right away.

If you have never had a proper discussion with the LA about why they have reached their decision, mediation may help. You might also consider it to give yourself more time to appeal. The appeal deadline is two months from the date of the decision letter, or one month from the date a mediation certificate is issued, whichever is the later.

would like to mediate the LA must arrange this within 30 days of you asking for it. The LA cannot refuse mediation or make you attend some other form o meeting beforehand. You can bring someone to mediation to support you if you like.

If you attend mediation and the LA agrees to settle the case and take the steps you are asking for, you must ensure that you get their agreement in writing, setting out clearly what they have agreed to do. Regulations 42 and 44 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 set out certain timescales that an LA must stick to after a mediation, if they have agreed:

To carry out an EHC needs assessment: the LA must notify the parent or young person that it is starting within 2 weeks, then either let the parent or young person know they have decided not to issue an EHC plan within 10 weeks, or send a finalised EHC plan within 14 weeks

To issue an EHC plan: the LA must issue the draft plan within 5 weeks and the finalised EHC plan within 11weeks

To change the name of a school in an EHC plan: the LA must issue the amended EHC Plan within 2 weeks

To amend an EHC plan: the LA must issue the amended EHC Plan within 5 weeks

If the LA agree to take certain steps in a mediation agreement but then fail to do so, they are acting unlawfully. This could be challenged via judicial review .

For more information about the process of bringing an appeal about an EHC needs assessment or EHC plan, see our general advice for all appeals .

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Mediation is a less formal way of trying to settle the dispute between you and the LA (and/or the health authority, known as the clinical commissioning group (CCG)). It involves a meeting between you, the LA and/or CCG and an independent mediator, who will try to help you reach agreement on the points of dispute.

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About SENDIASS SENDIASS stands for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information Advice and Support Service. It’s a free, impartial, and confidential service offering information to young people with special educational…

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The SEND information, advice and support service (SEND IASS) is a self-referring service which offers advice, information and support to parents or carers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) from birth to 25 years old.

You can contact SEND IASS by email on TowerHamlets&City.SENDIASS@towerhamlets.gov.uk or call 020 7364 6489 (Monday to Friday, 9am- 5pm).

SEND IASS is at the Parents Advice Centre which is located at 30 Greatorex Street, E1 5NP ( MAP).

The Parents Advice Centre offers:

Dedicated services for young people

SEND Young People Forum (Our Time All Ability Forum)

Advice, Information and Support on Education, Health and Social Care

Case work for parents and young people

Specialist support groups for parents e.g. SEN support group and ADHD support group

Advice and support with Admissions, Exclusions, Bullying including Appeals and Managed moves for any child or young Person in Tower Hamlets

Signposting to the Local offer

Training for parents, young people and professionals

Mediation service for schools, parents and young people

Monthly Educational Psychologists (EPs) Surgery

Monthly Developmental Language Disorder Surgery.

The SEND IASS and Parents Advice Centre work closely with a range of other service providers these include Health, Social Care and Citizens Advice Bureau.

For more information visit the SEND IASS website.

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Tower Hamlets SEND Information, Advice and Support Service

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Advice, information and support for parents, carers of children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN)

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Empowering Families
Special Educational Needs and Disability Information Advice and support Service, SENDIASS Newham(formerly Parent Partnership Services), is a statutory service designed to support parent/carers, children and young people 0-25, with issues relating to their special educational needs and disability (SEND) rights and provision. The support offered is free, impartial and confidential, as the service works at arms-length from the local authority (LA). Support is given electronically, telephone and face to face meetings. SENDIASS will not share parent, carer, or young persons information with other professionals, unless we have explicit consent or there is a safeguarding issue.
How do SENDIASS help?

Knowledge, advice and support based on SEND statutory process and duties

Advice and support around SEN Support and all aspects of the education, health and care plan (EHCP).

Exclusions (where the pupil has an SEN).

SEND Tribunal cases

Meeting support.

If you are a parent/carer, child, young person or professional in need of advice or support please call: 0203 373 0707 or email sendiass@newham.gov.uk

Please be aware that SENDIASS is a self-referral service, therefore we require service users to contact us themselves, unless there are extenuating circumstances which prevent the parent/carer or young person from accessing the service independently.
SENDIASS Information and Documents: Young People's Flyer Parent Referral Process SENDIASS Newham Working Practices SENDIASS Newham Steering Group Terms of Reference Young People's Steering Committee Terms of Reference Complaints Procedure

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Newham Families Advice and Support | SENDIASS

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Empowering Families Special Educational Needs and Disability Information Advice and support Service, SENDIASS Newham(formerly Parent Partnership Services), is a statutory service designed to support parent/carers, children and young people 0-25, with issues relating to their special educational needs and disability (SEND) rights and provision. The...

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Renaissance Foundation: London youth charity for Young Carers and Young Patients

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Our mission is to empower young carers and young patients across London to reach their full potential through inspirational workshops, personal development opportunities and once-in-a-life enrichment activities. Our programme provides inspiring support to transform the lives of young carers and pat

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Please use the form attached to register any concerns you may have regarding a child with or without SEND. A member of the Inclusion Team will aim to respond within 72 hours.

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Easily create surveys and polls to collect customer feedback, measure employee satisfaction, and organize team events.