Top tips for SENCOs – Transferring Statements to EHC Plans

The transfer of a Statement to an EHC Plan is also the Annual Review that year.

SENCOs are asked to review the Statement and working with the child/young person and/or parents/carers an Education, Health and Care Plan will be populated with the relevant information. The LA will consider the draft plan and will send a proposed EHC Plan to those concerned within the timeframe.

SENCOs are not writing legal documents. This process recordsannual review discussion in a format that mirrors Kent EHC Plans. Appeals are against KCC.

How long will this take? (New Statutory time frame from September 1st 2015 of 20 weeks means that the transfer review meeting must have been completed by week 3- 5.

  • Don’t try to do everything on one day/meeting. Remember, fatigue could set in for others and for you
  • The preparation time will get shorter but until you become familiar allow up to 2 days per pupil with a Statement
  • Be proactive in alerting your Head/SEN Governor to the time factor
  • Are you the only person in your school who will be doing this? If not, plan for others to get up to speed

Setting the meeting date

Setting the meeting date

  • The LA must write to parents/carers and yp and give them 2 weeks’ notice of the transfer review meeting date. Please let your local SEN area office know the dates of all your transfer meetings as soon as possible
  • Allow 2 weeks for parents to confirm availability
  • Give professionals 12 weeks’ notice wherever possible to optimise their chances of attending
  • Ask the SEN Case Officer to email a word doc version of the Statement so you can work on this prior to the meeting – please make clear to families that these are suggestions only. The feedback we have had from parents and carers is that they really like the traffic light system – Red – for de finite deletions (the child is now 15 and the SSEN still refers to potty training), Orange for anything you are unsure about and Green for anything that must stay in – for example in relation to the way the child communicates
  • Make an outline review timetable. Factor in timescales that remind you when to do things
  • Send a copy of your timetable to relevant professionals to remind them about the meeting date and send a copy of existing agreed outcomes Ask them if their original report and recommendations (including provision remains relevant or whether they will be attending the meeting or sending an updated report
  • Have a short conversation with the parent about what this EHC Plan transfer process means e.g. face to face or on the phone
  • Be flexible about review days/timing. Some parents need options
  • Invite the new school if this is a transition review

Getting the pupil views

  • Use Section A (the age-appropriate version). Collect the child’s view in advance, in bite sizes. Don’t do it all in one go
  • Use the most appropriate familiar adult to do this. One who can ask questions sensitively and avoiding negative image(anxious/sad? dislike?) e.g.sessions with a Learning Mentor.
  • Some pupils need alternatives to writing to comment on their progress appropriately. The LA can signpost you to a Communicate in Print version of this form.
  • If you are working with a Young Person (over 16 and past the end of compulsory schooling (end of Year 11) you must get their agreement to gathering and including the views of their parents/carers.

Know your parent/carers

  • Be explicit and overt that this is about parents having their say in the way their children receive SEN provision.
  • Positive feedback from our road test showed parents particularly liked being able to add their comment to each of their son/daughter’s views
  • Some parents will worry about change. Do you know how they are feeling about transferring? They need to know its different paperwork, but effectively they are keeping the Statement.
  • Some parents (and pupils) will struggle with long meetings. Consider using a pre-meet to combat fatigue. Chunk the discussion to agree what goes into needs (section B), to allow focus on outcomes ( E) and provision (F)at the review

On the day

  • Ensure visitors receive a warm welcome; the meeting needs to be in the school diary; make reception staff aware of expected visitors
  • Hold the meeting where ‘do not disturb’ means you can avoid interruption
  • Invite child/young person and parents to enter the room first so they don’t feel like ‘uninvited guests’ or there was a ‘closed pre-meet’
  • An interactive whiteboard could be helpful in recording points. Using track changes on the old Statement can help the discussion
  • If s/he is available, begin with the classteacher and allow questions
  • Stay outcomes focussed

Good chairing

  • Think about how you will present the information and when it will be available
  • Have the child’s file, the core standards etc. to hand so you don’t have to dig these things out.
  • Be clear about the interventions
  • Bring discussion back to the key issues, summarising what has been agreed and articulating the next steps.

After the review

  • Do not circulate the completed template e.g. there is no need for an accuracy check
  • The completed EHC template, the Transfer to EHC Plan form, Section A and Section F must be returned to the SEN Case Officer within one week of the meeting
  • A copy of the draft EHC Plan sent to the parents/carers or YP will be circulated to all those who participated in the review. Parents carers and yp have a period of 15 days will be allowed to check accuracy, clarify any points and/or comment etc.
  • Please contact your case worker if you would like further in detail guidance about transfer reviews