Shropshire Parent And Carer Council

Improving the quality of Education Health & Care Plans

The inspection identified some inconsistencies in the quality of Education Health and Care plans, especially those issued before the start of 2019. Work has been done to address this but, there is still work to do on embedding a wider understanding amongst all services of how they can contribute to EHCP’s.This is especially true in health services and this work will focus on improving health practitioners understanding of their role in the EHCP process.

What did the SEND Inspection Report say about the Shropshire EHCP process?

  • "The area met the requirement to convert statements to education, health and care (EHC) plans within statutory timescales. However, there are inconsistencies in the quality of input from education, health and care into the plans. This is particularly so for those plans written before January 2019."

  • "Area leaders and the SEND team have acted to improve the quality of EHC plans. Some plans contain good-quality input from education, health and care professionals. However, there is inconsistency is some sections of the EHC plans. For example, EHC plans do not always clearly explain the specific actions that need to be taken to help meet the child or young person’s needs. This is particularly so for the actions relating to health needs. Leaders within the therapy services have recently developed a template to improve the clarity and consistency of the advice given. However, it is too soon to see the impact of these actions."

  • "EHC plans written prior to January 2019 are weak regarding the information provided in the wider outcomes section. In addition, not all plans for children looked after by the local authority contain input from children’s social care. This includes plans written prior to, and since, January 2019. Many EHC plans are not updated in a timely way following an annual review. This may mean that a child or young person’s needs are not being met well. For example, sometimes students begin college with an EHC plan that is years out of date."

  • "In January 2019, leaders established a multi-agency panel to quality assure EHC plans before they are published. As a result, some more recent plans show effective joint work by education, health and care professionals. This is most notable in EHC plans written for 19- to 25-year-olds and for three- to four-yearolds. However, these improvements are not evident in all plans. In addition, leaders recognise that historical EHC plans are still in the process of being updated."