EHCP Personal Budgets: What Parents Can Ask For

A personal budget is one of the least used and least understood parts of the EHCP system. Many parents are never told the option exists, yet the right to request one is written directly into the Children and Families Act 2014. Used well, a personal budget gives your family genuine control over how parts of your child's provision are delivered, including, in some cases, money paid directly to you to arrange the support yourself.

This guide explains what a personal budget is, when you can ask for one, the different ways it can be managed, what it can and cannot pay for, and what to do if your request is refused.

What a Personal Budget Is

A personal budget is an amount of money identified by the local authority to deliver some or all of the provision set out in your child's Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). Instead of the council simply commissioning everything behind the scenes, a personal budget makes the funding visible and gives the family a say in how it is spent.

The legal basis is Section 49 of the Children and Families Act 2014, fleshed out by the Special Educational Needs (Personal Budgets) Regulations 2014 and Chapter 9 of the SEND Code of Practice 2015. The principle behind it is simple: families often know better than commissioners which therapist, tutor, or arrangement actually works for their child.

A personal budget is not extra money on top of the plan. It is a different way of delivering provision that is already specified in the plan, which is why the wording of Section F matters so much. Vague provision cannot be costed, so a specific, quantified Section F is the foundation of any meaningful budget. Our guide to Section F specificity explains how to get that wording right.

Your Legal Right to Request One

You have the right to request a personal budget at two points:

• When the draft EHCP is issued. The draft-plan stage, within the 20-week process, is the key window. When the council sends you the draft plan, you have at least 15 days to respond, and a personal budget request belongs in that response. The council must then either prepare a budget or explain why it cannot.
• At an annual review where the plan is being amended. If the council proposes amendments after a review, the amended draft triggers the same right. Our annual review checklist covers how to use review meetings strategically.

The request can come from the parent or from the young person themselves if they are over 16. Put it in writing, identify the provision in the plan you want the budget to cover, and say how you would like it managed. If you are still earlier in the process, our EHCP timeline guide shows where the draft-plan stage sits in the 20 weeks.

Direct Payments vs Arrangements

A personal budget can be managed in four ways, and you can mix them:

• Direct payments. The money is paid into your account (or the young person's) and you buy the provision yourself, for example employing a specialist tutor, booking private speech and language therapy sessions, or paying a support worker. You account for how it is spent.
• Arrangements (notional budgets). The council or the school holds the funds and organises the provision, but the amount is identified and you are involved in deciding how it is used.
• Third-party arrangements. The money goes to an organisation or trusted person who manages it on your behalf, useful if you want control without the administration of employing people directly.
• A combination. For example, direct payments for therapy delivered at home, with school-based support kept as a council arrangement.

One important restriction on direct payments: where the provision is delivered on school or college premises, the setting's agreement is required before direct payments can be used there.

What a Personal Budget Can and Cannot Fund

It can fund provision that is specified in the plan, commonly: therapy sessions (speech and language, occupational therapy, physiotherapy delivered outside NHS block contracts), specialist tuition, a support worker or personal assistant, specific equipment, short breaks and social care support from Section H, and home-to-school travel arrangements in some authorities (for example a personal transport budget instead of a council taxi).

It cannot fund anything that is not in the plan. It cannot normally be used to pay independent school fees, and it cannot replace the core teaching and support a school is expected to provide from its own budget (the first 6,000 pounds or so of SEN support, often called the notional SEN budget). It is also harder to extract a budget from provision the council buys through block contracts, which is one of the lawful grounds for refusing direct payments.

How to Request One

Keep the request simple and specific. In your written response to the draft plan:

1. State that you are requesting a personal budget under Section 49 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
2. Identify the exact provision in Section F (or Section H) you want it to cover.
3. Say how you want it managed: direct payments, an arrangement, third party, or a mix.
4. Explain briefly why this would deliver the provision better for your child, for example continuity with an existing therapist.
5. Ask for the council's decision, and its costing, in writing.

Ask to see the local authority's published policy on personal budgets too. Every council must set out its approach in its Local Offer, and the policies vary widely.

If the Council Refuses

Councils can lawfully decline direct payments in limited circumstances, mainly where the provision sits inside a block contract, where a direct payment would not be compatible with the efficient use of resources, or where it would have an adverse impact on other services. But a refusal must come with written reasons, and you have the right to ask the council to reconsider a refused direct payment, with a fresh decision and reasons given.

If the refusal really reflects a dispute about what provision should be in the plan at all, that is a Section F argument, and Section F disputes carry full appeal rights to the SEND Tribunal, explained in our tribunal appeal guide. For procedural failures, such as the council ignoring your request entirely, use the council's complaints process and escalate to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman if needed. A personal budget request is a statutory right, not a favour, and it should be treated as one.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an EHCP personal budget?

A personal budget is an amount of money the local authority identifies to deliver some of the provision in your child's EHCP. It gives families more say over how support is arranged. It can be managed by the council, paid to you as direct payments, held by a third party, or a combination of these.

When can I request a personal budget?

You have a legal right to request one when the draft EHCP is issued, and also at an annual review when the plan is being amended. The right comes from Section 49 of the Children and Families Act 2014. The council must then prepare a budget or give reasons why it cannot.

What can a personal budget pay for?

It can fund provision specified in the plan, such as therapy sessions, specialist tuition, support workers, equipment, short breaks, or home-to-school travel arrangements. It cannot fund anything that is not in the plan, and it cannot normally be used to pay school fees or replace a school's core funded provision.

What is the difference between direct payments and arrangements?

Direct payments put the money into your account so you buy the provision yourself, for example employing a tutor or therapist. Arrangements (sometimes called notional budgets) mean the council or school holds the money and organises the provision, but you are told the amount and have a say in how it is used. Third-party arrangements hand the money to an organisation that manages it for you.

Can the council refuse my personal budget request?

Yes, but only in limited circumstances, mainly where the provision is delivered through block contracts or where a direct payment would have an adverse impact on other services or not be an efficient use of resources. The council must give reasons in writing, and you can ask for a review of a refused direct payment. A refusal of the budget itself is challengeable by complaint and, where it reflects a Section F dispute, by appeal.