SEN - Assessment

The special educational needs of the great majority of children should be met effectively within mainstream settings but in a very small number of cases the Local Authority will need to make a statutory assessment of a child’s special educational needs and then consider whether or not to issue a statement of special educational needs.

Statutory Assessments

Statutory assessment is a very detailed assessment of a child's needs under the 1996 Education Act. It involves gathering information from a number of people including parents, school staff, an educational psychologist, health and social care and others who may work with and support a child. A statutory assessment should only be undertaken if the Local Authority believes that a child has special educational needs above those which can be met by schools at School Action and School Action plus (You can download and view a copy of the 'School Action and School Action plus' document from the Related Documents panel below).

A request for a statutory assessment can be made by a parent and this can be done by downloading and completing our 'Request for Statutory Assessment Form' (found on the left hand side under 'Do It Online'), please print and send this form to:

Section Head
Special Needs Section,
Oldway Mansion,
Paignton,
Devon
TQ3 2TE

An assessment can also be requested by a child's school or setting or another agency such as Health or Social Care.

The Authority will then consider whether to carry out an assessment (You can download and view a copy of the 'Making Statutory Assessments of SEN' document from the Related Documents panel below) Requests are considered by the 'Statement Resource Panel' which is an advisory panel which includes Head teachers, an Educational Psychologist and Officers of the Authority. The decision as to whether to carry out a statutory assessment remains with the Authority.

Disagreements

If the Local Authority does not agree to carry out a statutory assessment then this decision and an explanation of the reasons will be provided in writing to parents. Parents who are unhappy with this decision can appeal to the Special Needs and Disability Tribunal. Parents will also be offered an opportunity to meet with an officer of the Authority and / or an opportunity to discuss concerns with the Parent / Pupil Liaison Officer and the Parent Partnership Service. There is also an opportunity for parents to engage with the disagreement resolution service provided through an independent mediation service. Please refer to the 'SEN - Information for Parents' page for further details of all these services.

Agreements

If the Authority agrees to carry out an assessment then this must be completed with 26 weeks in line with statutory guidance in the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice 2001 (You can download and view a copy of the 'Statutory Assessments and Statements of SEN' from the Related Documents panel below).

If a statement of Special Educational Needs is issued then a legal document is produced which describes a child's special educational needs, objectives and the provisions required for the child to meet the objectives. The final statement will name the child's school. If a parent does not agree to that school being named they can appeal the 'Special Needs and Disability Tribunal'. (You can download and view a copy of the 'What if we can't agree?' document from the Related Documents panel below). However, every effort is made to work with parents and the child to ensure that agreement about the school place is reached.

For further information on the assessment procedure and the issuing of 'Statements of Special Educational Needs' please contact a member of the SEN team.

• Making Statutory Assessments of SEN
• School Action & Action Plus
• Statutory Assessments & Statements of SEN
• What if we can't agree?