Child or young person with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
Choosing a placement
The social worker involved with the looked after child should consult with the Virtual School Education Advisor, Area Officer or Placement Officer on an appropriate education placement for the looked after child.
If social workers are unsure about how school admissions work in relation to looked-after children, they should discuss this with the Virtual School Placement Officer.
A parent or young person will be able to request a particular school or college when they receive a draft EHCP or an Amendment Notice amending an EHCP.
This may be when:
- they are getting an EHCP for the first time
- the EHCP is being amended after an annual review
- the EHCP is being amended at any other time. For example, if the child or young person has to move schools and the EHCP needs to be amended to reflect that.
For more information about EHCPs, visit .
Admission route: EHCP
Children with EHCPs are not admitted through the admissions arrangements and are placed in schools through the EHCP process.
Under , the school named in an EHCP must admit the child.
This is not an oversubscription criterion – schools must admit these children regardless of whether they have places available.
Admission authorities must not imply in their published admission arrangements that they have discretion over the admission of children with an EHCP.
Naming a school in the EHCP
Before naming a school, a local authority must consult the governing body, proprietor or principal of any school or other institution the authority is considering having named in the plan.
If that school or other institution is maintained by another local authority, they should be given 15 days to respond. .
If they fail to respond, the local authority does not have to wait to make a decision about naming a school or college.
Even if the school or college, and/or the local authority where the school or college is located (if different), objects, the home local authority can still choose to name the school or college in the plan.
Deadlines
The local authority must keep to the statutory deadlines for issuing a final plan.
The local authority should issue the draft EHCP or amendment notice before the deadline. This is to make sure it can comply with its consultation duties.
The final decision is made by the local authority where the child or young person lives.
Page last updated: 15 May 2024