Appealing to the SEND Tribunal

You may want to make an appeal for various different reasons including:

• The Local Authority refused to carry out an EHC needs assessment
• The Local Authority refused to issue an EHCP
• You disagree with the contents of sections B and sections F of the EHCP
• You disagree with the named setting in the EHCP
• The Local Authority have decided to cease your EHCP

If any of these apply and you feel that the decisions are wrong, you may need to consider mediation.

Please note, if you are only appealing Section I of the EHCP, or there is no named setting, you do not need to consider mediation, and you can lodge your appeal with SEND Tribunal. We do advise you to first check you agree to the content in Sections B and F first. If you decide to appeal B and F alongside Section I, you will need to consider mediation.

Check out our information on Mediation to find out more!

If you have already considered mediation and decided not to mediate, or you have been to mediation and the outcome is not what you wanted, you can appeal to SEND Tribunal.

SEND Tribunal

The SEND Tribunal is a group of independent experts.

They help when you or your family disagree with a decision made by your local authority (LA) about:

• Your EHC needs assessment,
• Your Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan,
• Or if you feel a school has discriminated against you because of your disability.

It’s free! There is no cost to make an appeal or claim.
You might get legal help (called legal aid) to prepare your case.

What can the SEND tribunal do?

They can order your local authority to:

• Do an EHC needs assessment
• Make a new EHC plan
• Make changes to your existing plan

They can also make recommendations about your health or care support — your LA doesn’t have to follow those, but it should listen.

What happens at the tribunal?

• You and your LA send in your evidence,
• The SEND Tribunal looks at what the law says,
• They check if the LA followed the rules,
• They make a decision based on what is best for you now.

What law does the tribunal use?

The SEND Tribunal uses:

• Children and Families Act 2014,
• SEN and Disability Regulations 2014,
• Case law (what courts said before in similar cases),
• SEN and Disability Code of Practice (a guide for schools and LAs).

The Code is guidance, not the law, but the Tribunal usually follows it.

Are there deadlines?

Yes! You have a time limit to send your appeal. Don’t wait too long — get help as soon as possible!