Explain
Asking for an EHC needs assessment
A parent, a young person, or someone acting for a school or college has the right to ask the council for an EHC needs assessment. The Act and the Regulations do not set a form for the request, so a letter or email is enough. Many councils have their own form, but using it is not part of the legal test. The time limits run from the day the council receives the request.
The Code of Practice says a school or college should ideally ask with the knowledge and agreement of the parent or young person where possible. Anyone else can tell the council about a child or young person who may have special educational needs; see "Bringing a child to the council's attention".
- Type of rule
- Law (Act or Regulations)
- Rule id
request_for_assessment- Rules version
- england-2026.10
- Law as at
- 30 September 2026
Sources
- Children and Families Act 2014, s 36(1)Law (Act or Regulations)
- Children and Families Act 2014, s 36(3)Law (Act or Regulations)
- SEND Regulations 2014, reg 5(1)Law (Act or Regulations)
- SEND Code of Practice 2015, para 9.8Code of Practice: should (follow unless there is a good reason not to)
Related
- Bringing a child to the council's attention
- The legal test for an EHC needs assessment (section 36(8))
- Time limits for assessments and plans (6, 16 and 20 weeks)
- EHC needs assessment
In an assistant, the ehcp_next_steps tool helps with this: EHCP next steps.
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