You have sent the request letter asking your local authority to carry out an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment for your child. What happens now? This guide walks you through every stage that follows: the strict 6-week decision deadline, what the assessment actually involves, who the council is legally required to consult, the overall 20-week timeline, the evidence you can submit yourself, and your rights if the council refuses to assess.
Everything here is grounded in the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice 2015, the statutory framework every local authority in England must follow. If you have not yet made the request, start with our guide on how to get an EHCP first.
What an EHC Needs Assessment Actually Is
An EHC needs assessment is the local authority's formal, legal investigation into your child's special educational needs. It is not a single test or a single meeting. It is a process of gathering professional advice from education, health, and social care to answer two questions: what are this child's needs, and what provision is required to meet them? The assessment is the gateway to an EHCP, but an assessment does not guarantee a plan. The council assesses first, then decides whether a plan is necessary.
The legal threshold for agreeing to assess is deliberately low. Under Section 36(8) of the Children and Families Act 2014, the council must assess if your child may have special educational needs and may need provision through an EHCP. "May" is the operative word. Your child does not need a diagnosis, school support does not need to have been exhausted, and the school's permission is not required. If you are unsure whether your child meets the bar, our guide on whether you qualify for an EHCP covers the test in detail.
The 6-Week Decision
Once your request is received, the clock starts. The local authority has a maximum of 6 weeks to tell you, in writing, whether it will carry out the assessment. This deadline comes from the SEND Regulations 2014 and is not a target or an aspiration, it is the law. During those 6 weeks the council will usually ask the school for information and may contact you for your views.
Two outcomes are possible. The council agrees to assess, and the process moves into the assessment stage. Or the council refuses, in which case it must give reasons and tell you about your rights to mediation and appeal. If the 6 weeks pass with no decision at all, chase in writing immediately and escalate, because silence is itself a breach. Our EHCP timeline guide covers exactly what to do when a council misses a deadline.
Who the Council Must Consult
If the assessment goes ahead, Regulation 6 of the SEND Regulations 2014 sets out the advice the local authority must seek. This is not discretionary. The council must obtain:
- Your views as the parent, and the views of your child or the young person themselves
- Educational advice from the school, nursery, or other setting your child attends
- Psychological advice from an educational psychologist (EP), one of the cornerstones of the assessment
- Medical advice from health professionals involved with your child, such as a paediatrician, CAMHS, or speech and language therapy
- Social care advice from the local authority's social care team
- Any other advice you reasonably request, for example from an occupational therapist or a specialist teacher
One important protection: the council cannot simply recycle old reports if you ask for fresh advice and the existing advice is not sufficient for the assessment. If the EP report on file is three years out of date, you are entitled to push for a new one. Each professional asked for advice must respond within 6 weeks of the request.
The 20-Week Overall Timeline
The whole process, from the day your request lands to the day a final EHCP is issued, must take no more than 20 weeks. Within that:
Councils miss these deadlines frequently, but a missed deadline is a breach of statutory duty, not bad luck. Chase in writing, quote the regulation, and if delay persists, complain and escalate to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Delay never extinguishes your rights.
What Evidence You Can Submit
Your parental advice is statutory evidence, and it is often the most detailed picture the panel will see. Make it count. Submit a clear written account of your child's needs and the impact on their learning and daily life, plus anything that backs it up:
- A dated diary of incidents, struggles, and what daily life actually looks like
- Private or independent reports, such as an independent EP or speech and language assessment
- GP letters, CAMHS correspondence, and any diagnosis letters
- School reports, individual support plans, and records of interventions tried
- Examples of schoolwork that show the gap between effort and attainment
Be specific, factual, and concrete. "He becomes dysregulated three to four times a week and is removed from class" is far more powerful than "he struggles with behaviour".
If the Council Refuses to Assess
A refusal to assess is not the end. It is the single most commonly overturned decision in the SEND system. You have the right to appeal to the SEND Tribunal, and refusal-to-assess appeals are very frequently conceded by councils before they ever reach a hearing, precisely because the legal threshold is so low.
The steps are straightforward: contact a mediation adviser to obtain a mediation certificate (you do not have to attend mediation itself), then lodge your appeal within two months of the decision letter or one month of the certificate, whichever is later. Our guides on what to do when your EHCP request is refused and appealing to the SEND Tribunal take you through it step by step.
Next Steps
If the assessment is under way, diarise every deadline now: week 6, week 16, week 20. Prepare your parental advice early rather than waiting to be asked. And when the draft plan arrives, scrutinise Section F line by line, because vague provision wording is where good plans go wrong. Our guide to Section F specificity shows you exactly what to look for.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the council have to decide whether to assess?
Six weeks from the date your request is received. The local authority must tell you, in writing, whether it will carry out an EHC needs assessment. This deadline comes from the SEND Regulations 2014 and is not optional.
Who does the local authority have to consult during an EHC needs assessment?
The council must seek advice from you as the parent, the child or young person, the school or setting, an educational psychologist, health professionals, and social care, plus anyone else you reasonably request. It cannot rely on old reports if you ask for fresh advice and the existing advice is not sufficient.
How long does the whole EHCP process take?
The law allows a maximum of 20 weeks from your initial request to the final EHCP being issued, including the 6-week decision, the assessment itself, the draft plan, and the 15-day consultation on the draft. Many councils run late, and delay is challengeable.
Can I submit my own evidence during the assessment?
Yes, and you should. Parental views are statutory advice the council must collect. You can submit your own written account, a diary of incidents, private reports such as an independent educational psychology or speech and language assessment, GP and CAMHS letters, and examples of schoolwork.
What can I do if the council refuses to assess my child?
You can appeal to the SEND Tribunal. Refusal to assess appeals are the most commonly conceded type of appeal, and the legal threshold for assessment is low: the council only needs to think your child may have special educational needs that may require an EHCP. Contact a mediation adviser for a certificate, then lodge the appeal within two months of the decision letter.
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