Educational Psychologist Report

casimist

hiya, I hope this is okay to post here!

So we’re on week 32 of the dreaded EHCP assessment and had the EP assessment last week.

We’ve already submitted a complaint to the LA and we’ve been redirected to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman - we’ve submitted our complaint with them.

We have just been sent the EP report and it states that due to our daughters severe and complex needs, she requires 1:1 100% of the school day. They have also stated that she needs to be supervised by a TA who is trained in complex needs and severe communication delays (she is completely non-verbal). It stated that she needs to be in a small class in a school that has sensory/therapy rooms to allow her to regulate. She will also need to have nappies changed at school due to her showing no signs of potty training readiness.

She is due to start primary school September 2026 and applications for mainstream opens in a couple of weeks. We’ve already been told that we should get a decision in the near year and the draft will be a few weeks after that (making this a total of 12 months to assess her!).

Obviously we still need to apply for mainstream schools, which we’re going to do, but ideally we’d like her to go into a SEND school as their curriculum would better suit her and enable her to thrive.

I suppose my main questions are

1. What are the chances of our daughter getting into a SEND school, taking her EP report comments into account?
   
   
2. What will the ombudsman even do? The LA have stated that although the timeframe has gone well over the legal limit (currently DOUBLE), they are at full capacity and they cannot hurry their process. So what can the ombudsman actually do?

Thank you so much for reading. Im going out of my bloody mind worrying about her future.

Mary_Scope

Hi @casimist and a warm welcome to the community!

The EHCP process can indeed be quite stressful so it's completely understandable that you're feeling concerned about your daughter's future. As her mum, it's natural to want the best for her! It sounds like you're doing everything you can to make sure your daughter is getting the support she needs.

The recommendations in your daughter's Educational Psychologist report should help strengthen the case for a placement at a specialist school. The recommendations you’ve mentioned in your post like the one to one support and sensory rooms etc are typically things that only specialist schools offer and mainstream schools can struggle with, even with extra support.

A child should qualify for a place at a specialist school when mainstream school can’t meet their needs even with extra support.

When you receive your daughter's draft EHCP, you will be able to name a school on the EHCP. The local authority should go with your choice unless it can demonstrate that the placement would be unsuitable for your daughter's needs or isn’t a good use of resources. Once the final EHCP names a school, that school is required to admit your daughter.

The Ombudsman can investigate the impact of the EHCP delays on your family. If they find the council at fault then they can make recommendations to remedy the situation. These may include a formal apology from the council, compensation for any missed educational support and pushing the council to finish the EHCP process quickly.

I hope this was helpful, please reach back out if you have additional questions or would like more support😄