The Annual Review

The process of the Annual Review where the child or young person attends the school or setting follows 6 steps:

1. The SEND Team will provide a list to all schools and settings, of the children and young people who will require a review of their Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) each term at least 2 weeks before the start of that term. This list will also be sent to health and social care so that colleagues can prepare any supporting information or attend where necessary. The school or setting can then send out invites.
2. At least 2 weeks prior to the Review meeting:
   • the school or setting confirms the date of the annual review to the Special Educational Needs Designated Officer (SENDO)
   • there are templates in Section 1 of the Annual Review paperwork for the child or young person, parent carers and other adults who support the child or young person to complete. This should include health and social care as well as other colleagues in education. The school or setting must seek this information from all those invited to the review (guidance for collecting pupil voice can be found in the Voice of the child toolkit - Derby City Council)
   • completed contributions must be circulated to all those invited to the meeting (there should not be any surprises for anyone attending the meeting)
   • the school or setting should complete the educational attainment and progress section of the form ensuring
     • data shows progress over time
     • formal end of phase results are shared
     • there is a key to explain abbreviations
   • the school or setting should complete the Intervention section of the paperwork although they may want to leave the impact column to be completed following the discussion in the meeting where appropriate
   • Schools need to request any updated health information from the health services involved with the child or young person. A list of single point of contacts for health services is;

3. Hold the Review meeting. During the meeting:
   • celebrate all the highlights of the year
   • consider the Outcomes Framework - what progress is the child or young person making towards these? These might be a mixture of statements and photographs for example of a child playing with friends in the playground or this can be 3 simple statements for example:
     • I am cleaning my teeth every night without being prompted
     • I can move around school on my own without support
     • I will ask for help from any adult and even from my friends
     • I have joined sea cadets and go every week on my own
     • I feel listened to when I go to talk to Mrs X
   • consider the child or young person’s progress towards the outcomes and whether they are still appropriate – what is important over the next 3 to 5 years? What does everyone want the child or young person to achieve? What does the child or young person want to achieve?
   • Preparing for Adulthood
     • all reviews from Year 9 onwards (and preferably before) must include a focus on Preparation for Adulthood
     • the Review meeting should have a particular focus on options and choices for the next phase of education; consider and prepare for higher education or employment, independent living, participating in society and being as healthy as possible
     • if the young person is nearing the end of formal education and the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is likely to be ceased within the next 12 months, there should be a focus on good exit planning
   • review any short breaks provision and any arrangements for direct payments where relevant
   • set new interim targets for the coming year and, where appropriate, agree new outcomes
   • consider what provision is required to help the child or young person meet the new targets or outcomes
   • agree at the end of the meeting if a request is to be made for the EHCP to be maintained, amended or ceased
4. Within 2 weeks after the meeting, the school must prepare and send the Annual Review paperwork to everyone invited to the meeting and the Local Authority. Section 9.913 in the Code of Practice states ‘EHCPs are not expected to be amended on a very frequent basis’. These should be made to reflect significant changes to needs or provision or where a request is being made to change funding or to the named setting in Section I. Any requested amendments must be supported by evidence from professionals for example, a new diagnosis or a consensus that current arrangements are not adequately meeting the child or young person's needs. If there are proposed amendments, the setting must clearly show on the EHCP what is proposed to be removed (strikethrough) and what is proposed to be added (highlighted). It's vital that the EHCP refers to any difference between the school’s proposals and those of others attending the meeting (highlighted in different colours with a key for who is not in agreement). If there is a proposal to cease the plan, indicate this on Annual Review paperwork with a clear explanation of how you have arrived at this proposal for example, outcomes have been met.
5. The Local Authority will consider the proposed amendments and if necessary seek clarity from the school or setting if any further supporting evidence is required.
6. The Local Authority will decide whether to maintain, amend or cease the plan and share their decision in writing with the family and the school or setting no later than 4 weeks after the Review meeting. Once the letter has been sent the parents have the right to appeal the Local Authority decision.

Please note: the meeting itself is not the Annual Review; it is a part of the Local Authority's Annual Review of the EHCP and the date of the Annual Review is the date the process is completed.