If your child is transferring between phases of education in September 2019, then the statutory deadline by when your Local Authority should have reviewed, amended, and finalised the EHC Plan so that it names the placement your child will be attending in September 2019, is fast approaching.
For children transferring from:
(a) relevant early years education to school;
(b) infant school to junior school;
(c) primary school to middle school;
(d) primary school to secondary school;
(e) middle school to secondary school
The deadline is the 15th February 2019.
For young people transferring from secondary school to a post-16 placement, the deadline is 31st March 2019.
After the review, the Local Authority have 4 weeks to make a decision, and then a further 8 weeks to finalise the EHC Plan from the date that they provide you with the draft amended EHC Plan. Therefore, in order to guarantee that these statutory deadlines are met, the review should have happened by 23rd November 2018 for children, and by the 4th January 2019 for young people moving on to post-16 placements.
If your child’s Transfer Review hasn’t happened yet, you must force your Local Authority to complete the review as a matter of urgency.
The statutory deadlines are there so that children and young people will have certainty
about the placement they will be attending following phase-transfer. If you do not agree that the school named by the Local Authority can meet your child’s needs, then you have enough time to Appeal to the SEND Tribunal before the start of the school year in September 2019. The Tribunal will get very busy as Appeals are registered. Don’t get stuck at the back of a very long queue.
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