Amend, maintain or cease

After an annual review meeting Annual review The yearly check of an EHC plan, with a meeting you are part of. The review itself does not change the plan: the council must decide that afterwards. Read the full definition of Annual review , the local authority Local authority Your local council. In England, Wales and Scotland, this is the body you ask to assess what extra help your child needs. Read the full definition of Local authority must decide what happens to the plan: keep it as it is (maintain), change it (amend), or end it (cease). It must tell you its decision within four weeks of the review meeting.

The letter that carries this decision matters more than it looks. Your right of appeal Appeal A formal challenge to the SEND Tribunal about a council's EHC decision. It is free to bring, and you do not need a lawyer. Read the full definition of Appeal attaches to the decision, and the time limit for appealing runs from it. A common and costly mistake is to wait for the promised amended plan before acting: if the amended plan never comes, or arrives weaker than expected, a family that waited can find the appeal window has closed.

So when the decision letter arrives, note the date, and get advice straight away if you disagree with any part of it. Ceasing a plan is itself a decision you can appeal, and the plan usually stays in force while that appeal is decided.