This article explains what an Annual Review is, and why they are so important to your child's SEND education.
How many Annual Reviews will my child have?
The LA must review an EHCP (Education and Health Care Plan) a) in the period of 12 months from the date when the EHCP was first made; and b) every 12 months thereafter from the date of the last review, section 44(1) Children and Families Act 2014, and where the child is within 12 months of transferring from phases of education, nursery to primary, primary to secondary, secondary to post 16, and children in the three-tier system.
If your child does not attend school this is covered in section 21 of SEND Regs 2014.
This is potentially a great many Annual Reviews, so it's imperative that you are aware of the process and the legal timelines over Local Authority policy.
What is an Annual Review?
It’s an opportunity to look at the EHCP, how the child/Young Person (YP) is progressing towards achieving their outcomes. In or beyond Year 9, to also look at the provision required for preparation for adulthood and independent living.
The school must provide a report on how the child/YP is progressing and any recommendations for amendments to the EHCP. It is essential that parents also undertake this process. You must be aware of the quality of your EHCP and if it is, indeed fit for purpose. If it is not, now is the time to remedy this.
How do I change my EHCP at Annual Review?
The first step must be that you check the contents of the EHCP, and if sections B and F are out of date, or insufficient, they must be updated.
The update of these sections can only be made from professional reports, and alongside this, must be worded to legality.
For this, you should also read our blogs on EHCPs. The EHCP is only ever going to be as good as sections B and F and the professional evidence that this information is taken from. Click on the links to read our EHCP blogs.
How does the AR happen?
Reports and information must be shared before the Annual Review takes place, and to confuse matters the meeting that you will attend is not actually the Annual Review, this is ‘just’ the AR meeting. The actual Annual Review happens back at the LA.
Are there timescales?
Of course, isn’t there always? Plus, there’s a good chunk of SEND law that will be bulldozed by LA policy – if you don’t have the correct information.
That’s where Empowering Families of Children with SEND Ltd come to the rescue.
For a full guide to your child’s annual review see our Annual Review Webinar Event.
Anna & Sarah will talk you through this yearly meeting step by step, and identify the potential pitfalls, provide SEND law, together with a fully downloadable resource pack to ensure that you have a productive Annual Review with a successful outcome. Click here for more information: Annual Review Webinar
Our fully traceable feedback includes -
‘This webinar provided me with a clear explanations that the LA should be following and practical advice.’
‘Anna and Sarah’s methodical approach and the templates ensure everything is covered’.
Empowering Families of Children with SEND Ltd also provide fully bespoke 1:1 Annual Review support with Anna & Sarah as part of their professional service, for details click here: Bespoke 1:1 support from Anna & Sarah
You can find testimonials to our bespoke service on our website and Facebook business page - here
We are, and always will be, Stronger Together.
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