Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal Social Care Reports

Created: 2/16/2022

What is a SEND Tribunal?

If the parent of a child or young person with Special Educational Needs (SEN) is unhappy with a decision of a local authority in relation to an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or Statement of Special Educational Needs (in Wales), they can appeal to an independent national first-tier tribunal. The tribunal has the powers to make decisions and recommendations in relation to the child or young person's education, health and social care provisions provided for by the local authority. A key piece of information used by a local authority to make decisions in relation to a person's social care needs is a care needs assessment and sections D and H of an EHCP relate to social care needs and the provision required to meet those needs. Following a trial period, (where the tribunal could make recommendations in relation to social care) in addition to the tribunal having the powers to make decisions about education provisions, the powers of the tribunal to make social care recommendations remains.

Why might someone need a SEND social care report?

If a person is appealing against sections D (social care needs that relate to SEN) or section H (social care provision required), it is sometimes useful to instruct an independent Social Worker to write a report that explores these two sections in particular. The family may already have a social care report from the local authority (such as a children with disabilities assessment or assessment under the Care Act for those aged 18 or over), however it may not accurately describe the child or young person's needs. An independent Social Worker can complete a care needs assessment and advise on the information  that should be included in each of these sections (D and H).  It is not straight forward however,  depending upon the age of the young person, different assessment frameworks are used. Because we are a  all-age Social Work company, we can assess the child or young person using either framework. We can also explore matters that might otherwise be forgotten by a local authority children's social care assessment such as deprivation of liberty and (for young people aged 16 and over) the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act.

Does the same apply to Wales?

Some social care legislation is different in Wales to that of England. Appeals can still be made to the tribunal though. When instructing an Independent Social Worker,  it is worth noting that Social Work England only register Social Workers practicing in England. A different registration body, Social Care Wales, registers Social Workers who practice in Wales. If you would like to discuss this further, please email hello@simplysocialwork.co.uk or call us on 0330 0435423.