EHC needs assessment
Also called Education, health and care needs assessment. That is the name used in diagnostic manuals and on most official paperwork.
The process, in England, where the local authority looks in detail at your child's needs and decides whether to write an EHCP. You can ask for one yourself.
Applies in England
You do not have to wait to be offered an EHC needs assessment. GOV.UK says a request "can also be made by anyone else who thinks an assessment may be necessary, including doctors, health visitors, teachers, parents and family friends". You do not need a diagnosis to ask.
The local authority gathers information about your child from you, the school, and health and care professionals, then decides whether their needs call for an EHCP EHCP A legal document, used in England, that sets out a child's needs and the support they must get. It is for children who need more help than their school can give on its own. Read the full definition of EHCP .
There are two clocks, both set by law in England. GOV.UK states: "The local authority will tell you within 16 weeks whether an EHC plan is going to be made for your child." And: "Your local authority has 20 weeks 20 week timescale The legal time limit in England for the whole EHC plan process. It runs from your request for an assessment to the final plan: 20 weeks in all. Read the full definition of 20 week timescale from the date they receive the request for the assessment to give you the final EHC plan Final EHC plan The finished version of an EHC plan. Once it is issued, the support in it is legally binding, and your right of appeal starts. Read the full definition of Final EHC plan ."
A refusal at any stage can be appealed, and free advice services exist to help. This is England only. In Wales the equivalent route is being identified as having ALN Additional learning needs The term used in Wales when a child needs extra support to learn. It replaced the term special educational needs for children and young people in Wales. Read the full definition of Additional learning needs and getting an IDP Individual Development Plan (IDP) The plan a child in Wales gets if they need extra help with learning. It is a legal document, and it is the only statutory plan Wales uses. Read the full definition of Individual Development Plan (IDP) . In Scotland you can ask the education authority to assess whether your child needs a Co-ordinated Support Plan. In Northern Ireland the Education Authority carries out a statutory assessment.
Across the UK
- ALN identification and an Individual Development Plan : Wales has no EHC needs assessment. A child "has ALN if they have a learning difficulty or disability that makes it harder for them to learn than most children and young people of the same age", and if identified they get an IDP.
- Request to assess whether a Co-ordinated Support Plan is needed : Parents can ask their local authority to assess whether their child needs a CSP, under the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004.
- Statutory assessment : nidirect says "You can ask for an assessment for your child and so can your child's school." The Education Authority "must tell you normally within six weeks whether they will carry out an assessment", and "usually tells you if it is going to write a statement within 12 weeks of beginning the assessment".
Related words
Where this comes from
- Children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND): Extra help , GOV.UK. Checked 2026-08-09.
- A guide for parents about rights under the additional learning needs (ALN) system , Welsh Government (GOV.WALES). Checked 2026-08-09.
- Additional support for learning , Scottish Government (gov.scot). Checked 2026-08-09.
- Special educational needs: assessments , nidirect (Northern Ireland Government). Checked 2026-08-09.
- SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years , GOV.UK / Department for Education. Checked 2026-08-09.
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