Education, health and care plan annual reviews
What is an annual review?
If a child or young person has an education, health and care (EHC) plan, the law states we must review it at least once a year. This is called an annual review.
For children under 5 years of age, a review should take place more often, but they must also have an annual review. This is to take account of the faster pace of growth and development in early years.
The annual review meeting is an opportunity for you, your child and the professionals who support them to meet, discuss and review your child’s progress towards achieving the outcomes in the EHC plan and whether anything has changed. We will gather and consider information about your child - attendance, progress, attainment, what is going well and what is not going so well.
The review process is also a chance to look at whether your child is still in the right placement to ensure that they achieve their potential. For example, where your child is doing well in a special school placement there may be an opportunity to look at whether they are ready to transition back into a mainstream school setting. Or, if your child is struggling to make progress we may want to look at additional support in their current setting or whether a different type of setting might work better.
If there is concern about the progress of your child, you or the educational setting may request the review earlier than planned, outside the normal 12-month period. This is called an early annual review, sometimes referred to as ‘emergency’ review.