SENDIASS
A personal budget for SEN is money identified to pay for support specified in an Education, Health and Care plan (EHC plan) for a child or young person with special educational needs. It can include funds from Education, Health and Social Care.
The personal budget can be looked after by: the local authority, school or college for the parents or young person, an arrangement or notional budget; or by the parents or young person, a direct payment; or someone else, a third party arrangement; or a combination of these arrangements.
Parents of a child with an EHC plan or a young person with an EHC can ask for a personal budget either during the drafting period or once the plan has been issued and is under review. A young Person with an EHC CAN ask for their own personal budget after the end of the school year in which they become 16.
Sometimes the Local Authority may not to agree to a personal budget. If that happens the Local Authority should tell you why. You cannot appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal over this refusal.
A personal budget can be used only to fund the support set out in the EHC. This can include funding for the special educational, health and social care support that will help to achieve the outcomes set out in the plan.
A personal budget for educational provision cannot cover payment for a place at the school or college. It can include any top up of funding, known as Element 3 funding. It can also include support that is managed by the school or college, but only if the head teacher or Principal agree.
A personal budget shows you what money there is to make some of the provision specified in an EHC plan and who provided it. The parent or young person does not actually manage the funds directly.
With a direct payment, the parent or young person is given the money for some services and manages the funds themselves and is responsible for buying the service and paying for it.
A personal budget can include a direct payment if it is agreed that this is the best way to manage part of the personal budget.
Direct payments can be used for special educational provision only if the school or college agree.
It is also possible to have a third party arrangement to manage a direct payment.
How much you get will depend on what has been set out in the EHC plan. So it will vary from one person to another.
If the local authority has agreed to make a direct payment, it must be enough to pay for the service specified in the plan.
Some people have had Personal Budgets for health provision (a Personal Health Budget) and for social care provision (e.g. Fair Access to Short Breaks). They may have managed some or all of the provision using a Direct Payment. But this is the first time that Personal Budgets have become available for SEN provision.