Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the timing of EHC plan issue on Key Stage 4 attainment and post-19 employment.

The government wants all settings, including early years, schools and post-16 providers, to be confident in accurately identifying special educational needs and choosing evidence-based interventions that effectively address them. For those who require an education health and care (EHC) plan, our reforms will seek to improve families’ experiences and outcomes for children and young people (CYP).

The department has not made a specific assessment of the impact of timing of issuing EHC plans on key stage 4 attainment or post-19 employment outcomes. However, we recognise the importance of timely support for CYP with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) at every stage of their education.

Effective, timely identification and intervention are critical to improving outcomes for CYP with SEND. Through our proposed reforms, we will also seek to establish smoother transitions from school to post-16 education. This will include ensuring that settings work together and that transition planning for learners with SEND begins 12 months in advance.

The department recently consulted on its proposed SEND reforms and will set out its response in due course.