EHCP Refused: What to Do When the Local Authority Says No

The letter arrives. The local authority has refused your request for an EHC needs assessment — or they have completed the assessment and decided not to issue an EHCP. Either way, you feel like the system has slammed a door in your face. But a refusal is not the end. Here is what happens next and how to use it.

Two Types of Refusal

There are two distinct points at which a local authority can say no:

Refusal to assess — after receiving a request for an EHC needs assessment, the LA decides within six weeks that it will not carry out an assessment. This is governed by Section 36(8) of the Children and Families Act 2014.

Refusal to issue — after completing the assessment and gathering professional advice, the LA decides that it is not necessary to issue an EHCP. This happens less frequently once an assessment has been agreed, but it does occur.

Both decisions carry appeal rights, and both are regularly overturned by the SEND Tribunal.

The Grounds for Refusal

Local authorities most commonly refuse assessment on the basis that the child's needs are being adequately met at SEN Support level and an EHCP is not necessary. Their letters typically cite that the school has demonstrated interventions are working, or that the child's needs fall within what "ordinarily available provision" can address.

This reasoning is often weak because it misapplies the legal test. The test under Section 36(8) is not whether the child's needs are currently being met — it is whether the child may have SEN and it may be necessary to issue an EHCP. The threshold is low and predictive. An authority that says "the SEN Support appears to be working" may be conflating the test for issuing an EHCP with the test for deciding whether to assess.

If the LA's refusal letter does not address the correct legal test, that is a significant ground for appeal.

Your Right to Appeal

When a local authority refuses to assess, you have the right to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (SEND). You must register the appeal within two months of receiving the LA's decision notice. IPSEA's website has guidance on registering a Tribunal appeal and what the process involves.

The appeal process requires you to submit an evidence bundle — a set of documents supporting your case for assessment. This typically includes:

• All professional reports and assessments (school-based, NHS, or private)
• Records of SEN Support interventions, reviews, and outcomes
• School reports and progress data
• Your own written parental evidence describing the impact on your child at home and in school
• Any communication with the school documenting concerns

The local authority also submits its bundle. A panel hears the case and makes a binding decision. The Tribunal frequently overturns LA refusals, particularly where parents have good documentary evidence and the child's needs are clearly complex.

The Importance of a Paper Trail

The single most important factor in a successful appeal is documentation. A parent who has kept records of every SENCO meeting, every review, every unmet target, and every professional assessment will have a much stronger bundle than a parent relying on memory.

If you are at the refusal stage and your records are thin, start gathering what you can now. Request copies of all APDR review records from the school. Obtain copies of any professional reports. Write a detailed timeline of your concerns and the school's responses. Even imperfect records are better than none.

Mediation Before Tribunal

Before registering a Tribunal appeal, you must consider mediation. This is a legal requirement — you must contact a mediation adviser and obtain a certificate before lodging an appeal. The mediation adviser will contact you and give you the option to pursue mediation. You can decline and proceed directly to Tribunal, but you must go through this step to obtain the certificate.

Mediation is separate from the disagreement resolution services offered by some local authorities. It involves an independent, trained mediator. Some parents find it useful as a lower-cost route to resolution. Others find it ineffective when the LA is entrenched. Either way, it does not prevent you from appealing to the Tribunal afterwards.

What a Successful Appeal Means

If the Tribunal orders the local authority to carry out a needs assessment, the LA must comply. If the Tribunal orders the LA to issue an EHCP, the LA must issue one. The Tribunal's decision is binding.

This matters because the statutory process resumes from the point the Tribunal decides. If the Tribunal orders an assessment, the 20-week timeline restarts. If it orders a plan, the drafting and review process begins.

Keep Pursuing SEN Support Meanwhile

A refusal to issue an EHCP does not remove the school's duty to provide SEN Support under the graduated approach. While you are appealing, the school's obligation to identify needs and put provision in place continues. Keep pushing for meaningful APDR reviews, keep requesting the provision map, and keep documenting what is and isn't being delivered.

The England EHCP & SEN Blueprint includes an EHC needs assessment request letter template and guidance on building a strong evidence file — the foundation of any successful appeal.

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