EHC assessment process

Step 1

The EHC assessment admin team will process the request for assessment submitted via the EHC Hub website within 3 days of receiving the request. You will know this has happened because you will receive an email to register or log in to the EHC hub.

Contact the EHC Assessment Team if this does not happen.

Step 2

Complete the registration for the EHC hub to gain access to the assessment. This video will help: EHC hub account registration

If you have problems logging you can email the EHC hub technical team for help.

I have been allocated a ‘case co-ordinator’ (SEN casework officer). What is their job?

The SEN casework officer is allocated to work on your child’s assessment. They are here to support you with questions about the process and provide you with updates. Specifically, they will liaise with the professionals involved with your child to get information. You can contact your SEN casework officer by email or by telephone. Our friendly admin team will be able to provide the SEN casework officer’s direct contact details.

Step 3

 The EHC assessment team have up to 6 weeks from the date the request for assessment was received to make a decision. You can log in at this time to see what is happening.

Step 4

Within 6 weeks, you will get an email to ask you to log into the EHC Hub to view the local authority's decision.

Step 5

Log in to the EHC hub to view the decision as to whether the local authority has agreed to the assessment.

The assessment decision

You can view the decision by clicking on the first decision button. The letter on the EHC hub is the official notification of the LA’s decision. Any rights to mediation or appeal are outlined in the letter, including how to receive support from Walsall SENDIAS.

A paper copy of the letter can be posted upon request. Please contact the EHC Assessment Team to request this.

You should have already had contact with the local authority prior to this point to register on the EHC Hub. If you do not have access to the EHC Hub, please contact the EHC Assessment Team.

What can I see on the EHC Hub now?

After you have been notified about the decision, you will be able to look at the assessment page for your child or, if you are a young person, for yourself.

What else does the EHC Hub tell me about my child’s assessment?

You will be able to see the names of the professionals who have been asked to provide advice e.g. education psychologist, paediatrician or social worker. You will also be able to view the advice when they have submitted it. The professionals have 6 weeks from the advice request date to provide the advice to the local authority.

Please contact the EHC Assessment Team if we seem to have missed a professional out.

Responses from professionals on the EHC hub – what do they mean?

When a professional has completed the advice request – you will see ‘response received’.

If a professional does not need to provide advice, this will be closed. This may be because they have already provided information with the request or are no longer involved.

If a request is outstanding this will be ‘open’.

What happens next?

When we have received the completed advice from professionals, we will make a decision about the outcome of the EHCNA. If the local authority decides not to issue an EHC plan, you must be notified by letter no later than 16 weeks from the date of the first request to assess. You will receive an email about the decision. 

About me and parent/carer views

It is very important that we get your child/the young person’s views and also your views as parent/carer. You can type these into the boxes in the assessment section as shown below. You can also upload pictures and a short video (maximum 3 minutes). Contact the school SENCO or Walsall's independent SEND information, advice and support service (SENDIAS) for any help you may need to complete the parent/carer views or child/young person views.

Being informed of the outcome of the assessment

You will be able to view the outcome of the decision to issue by clicking on the decision icon. The letter is available to view as a pdf. The letter on the EHC Hub is the official notification of the LA’s decision. A paper copy of the letter can be posted upon request by contacting the EHC Assessment Team.

Step 1

Once the decision to issue an EHC plan has been made, the case co-ordinator will begin drafting the EHC Plan on the EHC H-hub. The final EHC plan must be issued 20 weeks from the date the request for assessment was received.

Don’t worry if you do not hear from us during this time. The case co-ordinator (SEN casework officer) is working behind the scenes to draw all the submitted advice together.

Step 2

When the draft is ready to be shared, you will be notified by email that there is an update on the EHC hub and you can log onto the EHC hub to view it.

Step 3

The draft EHC plan can be viewed in the 'plan' section of the EHC hub. You can view the draft by clicking into the different sections of the draft EHC plan as seen below. You can also download a copy of the draft, if required, to share.

Step 4

During this time you can add your comments about the draft EHC plan. You can view all of the advice that have been supplied and used to write the draft. You have 15 calendar days to respond with your comments in the EHC hub via a comments box.

You can request a meeting at this time. You also have the right to request that a particular school or type of school be named in the final EHC plan.

Step 5

If a parent or young person makes a request for a particular school or education setting, the case co-ordinator (SEN casework officer) will consult with this setting by sending the governing body, principal or proprietor of the school or education setting a copy of the draft EHC plan and its appendices.

The education setting will have 15 calendar days to respond to the consultation.

Step 6

Once the consultations to education settings have been returned and any decision making panels in regards to provision have been held by the local authority, the EHC plan will be finalised. You will be able to download and print it.

You will also be able to see the full assessment at any point when you log back in via the ‘EHC case summary’ page.

Step 1

When the request has been submitted online by the school, yourself or via a SEN casework officer on your behalf, the EHC assessment admin team will process the request for assessment within 3 days of receiving the request. You will know this has happened because you will receive a letter in the post to acknowledge the request.

Contact us if this does not happen.

I have been allocated a ‘SEN casework officer’. What is their job?

The SEN casework officer is allocated to work on your child’s assessment. They are here to support you with questions about the process and provide you with updates. Specifically, they will liaise with the professionals involved with your child to get information. You can contact your SEN casework officer by email or by telephone. Our friendly admin team will be able to provide the SEN casework officer’s direct contact details.

Step 2

The EHC assessment team have up to 6 weeks from the date the request for assessment was received to make a decision. You can contact our admin team at this time to find out what is happening.

Step 3

Within 6 weeks, you will receive a letter in the post to let you know the local authority’s decision as to whether we have agreed to assess your child’s SEND.

Step 1

After the decision to assess has been made, the local authority must seek information and advice on your child/young person’s needs from a range of professionals e.g. education, health and social care.

How long does this take?

The advice from professionals should be received by the local authority 6 weeks from the advice request date.

Step 2

It is very important that we get your child/the young person’s views and also your views as parent/carer. If these have not already been provided with the request for assessment, we will write to you and ask you to complete a child views and family conversation. The school SENCO and SENCO or Walsall's independent SEND information, advice and support service (SENDIAS) can help with this.

Step 3

When we have received the completed advice from professionals, we will make a decision about the outcome of the EHCNA. You will be notified of the outcome by letter. 

If the local authority decides not to issue an EHC Plan, you must be notified by no later than 16 weeks from the date of the first request to assess.

Step 1

Once the decision to issue an EHC Plan has been made, the SEN casework officer will begin drafting the EHC Plan. The final EHC Plan must be issued 20 weeks from the date the request for assessment was received.

Don’t worry if you do not hear from us during this time, the SEN Casework Officer is working behind the scenes to draw all the submitted advice together.

Step 2

When the draft is ready to be shared, you will receive a copy of the draft EHC plan and its appendices (all the advice that has been written to contribute to the plan) in the post.

Step 3

You have 15 calendar days to respond with your comments to the local authority. You can request a meeting at this time with your SEN casework officer. Walsall SENDIAS can also provide you with support with the draft EHC plan at this time too.

You also have the right to request that a particular school or education setting be named in the final EHC plan. This form must be returned to the local authority with any views/comments about it.

Step 4

If a parent or young person makes a request for a particular school or education setting, the SEN casework officer will consult with this setting by sending the governing body, principal or proprietor of the school or college a copy of the draft EHC plan and its appendices (the advice provided as part of the EHCNA).

The education setting will have 15 calendar days to respond to the consultation.

Step 5

Once the consultations to schools/education settings have been returned and any decision making panels (to decide about funding or for a place in a special school) have been held by the local authority, the EHC plan will be finalised.

You will receive a copy of the final EHC plan in the post.