What an EHCP actually is
An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is a legal document produced by the local authority in England for a child or young person aged 0-25 who has special educational needs (SEN) that cannot be met by their school's ordinary SEN Support. It describes the child's needs, the outcomes they should achieve, and the specific provision the local authority is legally obliged to fund.
Who qualifies
Any parent, young person over 16, or school can request an EHC needs assessment. The threshold is not "level of diagnosis" — it is whether the school's SEN Support (the "graduated approach": Assess-Plan-Do-Review) has not resulted in expected progress. Around 4% of children in England have an EHCP; the number is rising each year as awareness grows.
How to apply
Write to your local authority's SEND team requesting an EHC needs assessment. Include a covering letter with your child's history, current provision, evidence of unmet need, and copies of school reports, sensory profiles or private assessments. Keep a copy. The LA has 6 weeks to decide whether to assess.
The 20-week timeline
From the day the LA agrees to assess, they have 20 weeks to issue a final plan. That includes 6 weeks to decide, another 10 weeks for evidence-gathering (educational psychologist, health, social care, parental views), and a further 4 weeks to consult on and finalise the plan.
If you're refused
You can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND). Around 96% of appeals succeed for parents when they present themselves. Use IPSEA's free legal helpline (ipsea.org.uk) and consider a subject-access request to the LA for their internal notes on your case.
How NeuroKids helps
The EHCP Toolkit inside NeuroKids maps every parent-logged behaviour, sensory profile update and regulation strategy that worked into a draft Section B — the "special educational needs" section that carries the most weight at annual review. Parents can share a read-only link with the school SENCO with one click.