What is a “Statutory Assessment?”

Assessment for a child with Special Educational Needs means finding out:
• what a child can do and cannot do;
• what a child needs to learn;
• how a school can help a child to learn.
If a child is on School Action then teachers will be reviewing your child’s progress. If your child is on School Action Plus then the school will have asked other professionals to be involved in reviewing progress. They should be able to show what they have found on a plan such as an Individual Education Plan (IEP) or Group Education Plan (GEP). There may be times when you, the school or the Local Authority (LA) believes that your child needs additional help and so needs a further detailed assessment – a Statutory Assessment. If your child has a Statutory Assessment then the Local Authority will next decide whether the child needs a Statement.

Reasons for asking for a Statutory Assessment

Children considered for Statutory Assessment have complex difficulties affecting learning: -
 communication and interaction (speech and language)
 cognition and learning (understanding and taking in new ideas);
 behaviour, emotional and social development;
 sensory and/or physical needs (hearing, sight, physical disability);
 long-term medical conditions (in a way that affects life in school).

Usually the child will have been receiving support at School Action Plus for some time, but is not making the progress that was expected. Occasionally it may be because there has been a sudden change, such as after a serious accident.
How to request a Statutory Assessment

The school usually asks for a Statutory Assessment after discussion with the parents, and the request form should include your views or a supporting letter (you could use the letter below to guide you, but start it with, “I am writing to support the school’s request for …..”

Parents may also ask for Statutory Assessment. It is a good idea to discuss this with the school first, and check why they are not requesting it. If you want to ask for one yourself then you should write to Education Officer in Children’s Services at your Local Authority. You can include reports which may help them understand your child’s difficulties.

Your letter could be laid out like this (remember to include the date):

Dear (name of officer),

I am writing to you to request a statutory assessment for my child, (child’s name, date of birth), who attends (name of school). He/she has the following special educational needs: (list briefly).

Give brief details of any services which are involved with your child, such as CAMHS, consultant paediatrician, speech and language therapist, occupational therapist etc.

He/she has been receiving support at School Action Plus for (give period of time, if you know), but is not, in my view, making adequate progress. I feel that he/she requires additional support to help him/her make progress, and that this can only be provided if he/she has a statement of special educational needs.

I understand that you have six weeks from the date of this letter in which to decide whether to carry out a statutory assessment. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely, ………………

The Local Authority decision

Once the Local Authority has received the request for a Statutory Assessment it will look at the information it has received. If the parent has asked for Statutory Assessment then the Local Authority will write to the school and ask them for further information.

A group of Local Authority staff will make a decision. This is called the “panel”.
They will look at:
 Your child’s difficulties;
 Your child’s progress;
 The support already being provided by the school;
 Any specialist advice provided at School Action Plus;
 Any information that the parents have sent.

The panel will decide whether your child should have a Statutory Assessment based on the written information.

The Local Authority should write to you with their decision within 6 weeks of getting the request. You will probably want to discuss the decision with your child’s school.

If the Local Authority decide not to carry out a Statutory Assessment -

The Local Authority will write to you giving reasons for their decision and explaining your rights. If you disagree with the decision then look at our factsheet Working with the Local Authority

You are welcome to contact Parent Partnership Service for information, advice and support.

 If the Local Authority agree to carry out a Statutory Assessment –

The Local Authority will write to you and ask you if you would like to give your views as part of the assessment (this may be called the Parental Contribution).

If you want the Statutory Assessment to go ahead: -

Complete and return any paperwork that came with the letter.

You have up to 6 weeks from the time that you received the letter to send in your Parental Contribution. There is information about how to write it in the pack from the Local Authority, and PPS also produces a factsheet Parental Contribution.

If you wrote a lot of detail when Statutory Assessment was first requested, and you do not need to add anything, then make sure that the Local Authority know that you want them to treat this as the Parental Contribution.

If you do not want the assessment to go ahead:-

You should write to the Local Authority giving your reasons. The Local Authority will look carefully at your reasons and may wish to arrange a meeting with you.

If you do not reply to the letter:-

After 29 days then the Local Authority will assume that you agree to the Statutory Assessment and will go ahead.
 

Statutory Assessment arrangements

Different people are involved in the child’s Statutory Assessment:
 You and your child;
 Your child’s school;
 Educational Psychologist - this assessment is usually done at school – but ask if you would like to meet (you will not get a copy of their report at this stage, it will come at the end of the Statutory Assessment process);
 Medical Officer – you will get an appointment for this;
 Social Services Department – by law the Local Authority must ask them if any child going through Statutory Assessment is known to them.

The following may also be involved if they already know your child:
 Speech and Language Therapist;
 Occupational Therapist;
 Paediatrician;
 Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist;
 Special Educational Needs support services staff.
You may be asked to take your children to a health or education appointment.

Parents should be fully involved at each stage of the assessment by:
 Giving your own views (see our factsheet Parental Contribution);
 Sending the Local Authority any copies of all reports that you have, or receive during the assessment, that may help them to understand your child’s difficulties and needs;
 Taking your child to all appointments. If you cannot go, then arrange another time. It can delay the Local Authority making a decision if they do not get reports from all the agencies.

At each appointment the professional should explain what they are doing and give you time to ask questions. You will be able to stay with your child, but sometimes a professional may feel that your child is responding differently because you are there, and may ask to see your child on their own.
 

The decision about a statement

The Local Authority has 10 weeks from the date on which they agree to make the assessment to decide whether to issue a statement. They can take longer:
 If the assessment period is over the school summer holidays;
 If something serious affects the family;
 If the child misses appointments;
 If Health or Social Services do not send in reports on time.

The Local Authority panel uses the information to decide whether a child needs a Statement. They will write to you with their decision. You will probably want to discuss the decision with your child’s school.

If the Local Authority will not issue a Statement

The Local Authority will write to you giving reasons for their decision and explaining your rights.

Note in Lieu – in some cases the Local Authority issues a “Note in Lieu” instead of a Statement (this means “Note in place of”). It will include a description of your child’s needs, a description of how the school would be expected to support your child and help them make progress and copies of all the reports that the Local Authority has received. It will not provide any extra funding to the school or be legally binding (this means that it can only suggest what support your child should receive).

You are welcome to contact Parent Partnership Service if you would like to discuss your options and we also produce a Factsheet Working with the Local Authority.

If the Local Authority will issue a statement

A statement is a legally binding document which gives details of your child’s special educational needs and describes the support your child needs to help them make progress.

It should:
 include information about your child;
 describe the kind of education they should receive;
 explain how much extra support the Local Authority will give to your child’s school.

Proposed Statement

The Local Authority will send you a Proposed Statement (also called a Draft Statement). It will also include all the reports that they have received. This is not the final version and you have time to discuss with them if there is anything that you think should be changed. You will get a letter that explains that you can give your views on this Proposed Statement. You have 15 days to write or to phone. If you need more time then you should contact the Local Authority within 15 days to tell them that you will be responding.

It is worth spending some time reading this through and checking it against the Advice (all the reports and the information).

You may wish to discuss the Proposed Statement with your child’s school. The school may not have been sent a copy so you may need to take it in. Contact the Parent Partnership Service if you want to ask if someone could go through it with you.

Naming a School

The name of the school will be left blank on the Proposed Statement and you will be asked to name a school. You will be sent details of schools that the Local Authority states is appropriate to your child’s age. The Local Authority will usually agree with your choice providing:
The school is suitable for your child’s age, ability and special needs;
 Your child’s attendance will not affect the efficient education of other children already at the school;
 Placing your child in the school will be an efficient use of the Local Authority’s resources (this means that they do have a duty to consider how much a school placement costs).

The Final Statement

If you do not contact the Local Authority, or if you contact them to say that you agree to the Proposed Statement, then they will issue a Final Statement. If you have asked for any changes to the Proposed Statement then the Local Authority will tell you if they agree to these changes.

Usually the Local Authority will send the Final Statement within 8 weeks of issuing the Proposed Statement, but this may take longer if there are ongoing discussions about the Statement or the School Placement. It will now name a school in Part IV of the Final Statement.

If you do not agree with the Final Statement

The Local Authority will write to you giving reasons for their decision and explaining your rights. If you disagree with the decision then look at our Factsheet: Working with the Local Authority. You are welcome to contact Parent Partnership Service for advice and support.

After the Final Statement - what happens next in school?

The Local Authority will send a copy of the Final Statement to your child’s school. You may wish to ask for a meeting with your child’s school to discuss how the Statement will affect the support and help your child receives. The school now has a duty to follow the Statement and put in place the support. It is useful to discuss their plans with the Class Teacher or with the Special Educational Needs Co-coordinator (SENCO).

Any resources that the Local Authority is giving should be extra to the support that the school is giving to your child at School Action Plus, and this support should continue. The school may not be able to follow the Statement straight away, particularly if they have to recruit a new member of staff.

There will be an Annual Review of the Statement held at the school every year. You will be invited to this and you will have a chance to give your views. You may want to look at the Parent Partnership Service Factsheet Annual Review.

If you disagree with any decisions that are made about your child’s statement following the Annual Review then look at our factsheet Working with the Local Authority

You are welcome to contact Parent Partnership Service for information, advice or support.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my child’s school issue a statement?
No – only the Local Authority can issue a Statement. The school will provide the Local Authority with information about your child to help them to make a decision.

If the Local Authority carries out a Statutory Assessment, does this mean that my child will get a Statement?
Not necessarily – the assessment may show that your child’s school is able to provide the support and help that they need to make good progress.

If my child is turned down for Statutory Assessment, can I ask again?
Yes – you may want to do this if you feel that your child’s needs have changed since your last request, if you have more information about your child’s needs, or if you feel that your child is no longer making progress.

After Statutory Assessment the Local Authority did not issue a Statement. Can I ask for another Statutory Assessment?
Yes – but you will have to wait for six months. You may also decide to appeal against their decision not to issue a statement now.

 The Local Authority has sent me a Proposed Statement, but why have they sent me a list of all the mainstream and special schools?
This is a standard list that is sent to everyone, so do not worry if most of the schools are not suitable for your child. Usually children stay at the school that they are already attending unless the Statement is recommending a different type of school.

I do not think that the school is following my child’s statement. What can I do?
First you will need to discuss your concerns with the teacher or Special Educational Needs Co-coordinator (SENCO). They may be able to offer re-assurance or explain their plans. Our Factsheet Working with your child’s school will give you some suggestions for working with the school, and your options if you are unhappy with the outcome. The Annual Review is an opportunity for you to raise any of your concerns, and you ask the school or the Local Authority directly if you would like someone from the Local Authority to attend the review. You can ask the school to consider bringing the Annual Review forward.

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