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Independent Review into EHC assessment process

We have now received the final report from the Independent Review into the processes and effectiveness of our Education Health and Care Needs Assessments (EHCNA) in Hertfordshire.

The review was commissioned by us (Hertfordshire Councy Council) earlier this year following a judicial review claim regarding delays relating to an EHC Needs Assessment. It also aligns with our commitment to  improving SEND services for children and young people through our SEND improvement plan, put in place after an Ofsted/ CQC inspection last year.

View the final report of the Independent Review (pdf 82kb)

Who conducted the review? 

The independent review was carried out by Leon Glenister, a nationally recognised expert in this field and a leading barrister in Education and Special Educational Needs law. 

What was the focus of the review?

Mr Glenister looked at 3 areas in particular:

  1. The initial decision whether or not to assess a child or young person,
  2. Appeals against refusals to assess, concessions in refusal to assess appeals,
  3. The subsequent completion of the EHC Needs Assessment (EHCNA).

Who was consulted as part of the review?

During the review, Mr Glenister engaged with parent representatives from the parent carer forum Herts Parent Carer Involvement (HCPI), Hertfordshire County Council employees and leaders, NHS leaders and managers, a SENCo, a volunteer at ‘SOS!SEN’, a member of ‘SEND National Crisis Hertfordshire’ and Dame Christine Lenehan (chair of the Hertfordshire SEND Priority Executive), to ensure a comprehensive and wide range of perspectives were heard. He reviewed information relating to assessment rates, examined the council’s training material and considered the findings of a number of parent surveys.

What the review found

The final report has found the county council to be working transparently and delivering improvements. Other key findings included:

  • ‘There is significant cause for optimism’ in relation to improvements being made to the EHCNA process, driven by increased investment, and ‘the infrastructure is now in a good position to maintain the improvement seen thus far at a good pace’.
  • There is no deliberate policy to apply too high a threshold in determining whether to carry out an EHCNA
  • Historic delays determining whether to assess were due to the capacity in the system, and that ‘the lack of capacity has led to failures in communication’.
  • The leadership of SEND services within the council have ‘never sought to challenge parental views on what is going wrong, rather they have sought to identify solutions.’ They have been ‘transparent about flaws identified’ and are ‘focussed on delivering improvements.’

What are the recommended improvements and what are we doing about them?

We recognise that the progress we’ve made in the service is not yet being consistently felt by all families. As part of the review, Mr Glenister has made a number of recommendations to further improve process, practice and communication which we welcome to support our SEND improvement journey.

As per the terms of reference for the review, we have published our plans to address the recommendations, and we will complete these actions by Tuesday 27 August.

Recommendation 1

Where an EHC Needs Assessment request is received, the Children's Information and Advice Officer (CIAO) should diarise the 6 week deadline. If that passes and no decision has been made, they should always contact the parent to explain the reasons for that delay immediately. If this is initially a phonecall, it should be followed up by a short email.

What we will do to improve

  • Children's Information and Advice Officers (CIAO) will log decision deadline dates for each EHCHA in a central record. This will be in all cases and form part of the business process for logging a new EHC Needs Assessment Request. 
  • Children's Information and Advice Officers (CIAO) will be provided with a practice guidance note and training to support the implementation of the contact call and follow up email after week 6 decision deadline has been missed.
  • Our Front Door Team Leads and Children's Information and Advice Officers (CIAO) will diarise a rolling weekly meeting to discuss all EHC Needs Assessment Requests at week 4, highlighting any risks/issues and taking proactive steps where there may be a risk to the week 6 decision due date, and then escalate any issues and priorities to Casework Managers and the Service Manager

Recommendation 2

Following consideration of the weekly child level report, the relevant Team Lead should discuss each case where the 6-week deadline has been missed with the relevant Children's Information and Advice Officer (CIAO).

What we will do to improve

  • As above.

Recommendation 3

The key points from the case law on the EHC Needs Assessment (EHCNA) test are included in all induction and training materials for SEND Panel Chairs as well as attendees for Local Multi-Agency Group (LMAG) panels.  

What we will do to improve

  • We will update all induction and training materials for SEND Panel Chairs and LMAG attendees to ensure they cover the key points from the case law on the EHCNA test.

Recommendation 4

There should be concise standing document for each LMAG Panel setting out the legal test, to include the key points from the case law, which should be part of the introductory papers for every panel meeting.

What we will do to improve

  • We will further develop our concise standing document for each Local Multi-Agency Group (LMAG) Panel which sets out the legal test and the key points from relevant case law. And this will be shared with SEND Panel Managers and attendees of LMAG at each panel meeting and compliance will be monitored.

Recommendation 5

Whenever a tribunal appeal is conceded, or otherwise determined by the First Tier Tribunal (FTT), the SEND Panel Manager who took the initial decision to refuse to assess should be provided with a note setting out the reasons why the decision was conceded, or a copy of a FTT judgment in the case of an appeal.

What we will do to improve

  • As part of the new Moderation Panel mechanism, agendas will consistently include learning from tribunal concessions including copies of judgements and the notes in order to ensure that all members are clear on the reasons why appeals have been conceded and this learning is embedded into future decision making.

Recommendation 6

A member of the Council’s Reconciliation and Resolutions Team attends monthly moderation meetings between the SEND Panel Managers where refusal to assess cases are being discussed.

What we will do to improve

  • We will ensure a member of the Council’s Reconciliation and Resolutions Team consistently attends the monthly moderation meetings with the SEND Panel Managers where refusal to assess cases are being discussed.

Recommendation 7

The monthly performance report should include reference to the number of 'refusal to assess' appeals, those conceded, and (as at present) the numbers determined by the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) for and against the Council.

What we will do to improve

  • We will continue to provide the operational teams, including senior service leads up to the County Lead for Statutory Assessment, with monthly performance report on the number of open/active Refusal to Assess (RTA) and Refusal to Issue (RTI) decisions as part of the weekly EHCNA activity status reporting. 
  • We will include aggregated total number of Refusal To Assess/Refusal To Issue decisions and the number of these that conceded in the monthly Inclusion and Skills Performance Dashboard, to be tracked on a rolling monthly basis. 
  • First Tier Tribunal information is already provided in the Monthly Appeals Report which is circulated to the Resolution and Reconciliation Service but will now be added to the monthly Inclusion and Skills Performance Dashboard.

Recommendation 8

The Council reviews and amends training materials and guidance to ensure that where it states the graduated approach is a relevant consideration, it is clear it is not an absolute criteria or pre-condition. 

What we will do to improve

  • As part of our continued development of the SEND Academy model, we will review appropriate documentation to ensure that the graduated approach is a relevant consideration. 

Recommendation 9

Where an appeal against a refusal to assess is conceded, a timeline should be agreed with the parent, and if an EHC Plan is to be issued then that should not be more than 14 weeks from the date of concession. 

 

What we will do to improve

  • We will ensure written communication with parents following a concession on Refusal to Assess (RTA) is undertaken clearly and consistently to set out the timeline and expectation for assessment in line with the legal framework. 

Recommendation 10

The Council should publish an accessible document setting out an introduction to SEN provision, to include the graduated approach, requests for an EHCNA (and test applied) and timelines for an EHC Plan. This should be concise and may be an introduction with relevant links to further information. It should also include links to other sources of assistance for parents such as SENDIASS. This should be readily available on the Council website and be handed out to parents when they meet council officers to discuss SEND provision.

What we will do to improve

  • We will create a family friendly and accessible version of the “at a glance” document to include the graduated response, request for a ECHNA and timelines for an EHC plan.
  • We will publish this document in leaflet format and via a QR code and ensure council officers make this available in interactions with parents and carers.

Recommendation 11a

The template decision letter where there is a refusal to assess should be reviewed and rewritten.  It should include reference to the legal test that the decision maker applied to be transparent.  The term 'more suitable pathway' should be removed. 

What we will do to improve

  • We will rewrite the template decision letter where there is a refusal to assess (RTA). The template will include reference to the legal test that the decision maker applied. The term “more suitable pathway” will be removed.

Recommendation 11b

The Council should issue guidance to SISOs on the level of detail in the reasons given, which should directly address the legal test.

What we will do to improve

  • We will issue practice guidance to the SEND Implementation Support Officers (SISO’s) on the level of detail in the reasons given that address the legal test.

Recommendation 11c

Once a decision has been made at the LMAG Panel, the Chair should check specifically with the SISO that they understand the reasons why it was considered the legal test is not met to ensure these can be properly communicated in the decision letter.

What we will do to improve

  • SEND Implementation Support Officers (SISO’s) will attend Local Multi-Agency Group (LMAG) panel and be part of the discussion and decision making, so that they understand the reasons why it was considered the legal test is not met to ensure these can be properly communicated in the decision letter.

Recommendation 12a

The guidance and training for SISOs in relation to Implementation Support Meetings (ISMs) should make clear that at every ISM: the school is provided with an opportunity to feed back any concerns about the refusal to assess decision and these are considered.

What we will do to improve

  • We will deliver focussed team training to relevant officers to ensure there is a clear process for school to feedback concerns on Refusal To Assess (RTA)    
  • We will ensure this process is readily accessible to schools via the website, should they need to use it.                             

Recommendation 12b

Consideration is given to whether a check in is required with the parent and/or school in relation to the child’s progress, and if so, when that should take place. If such a check in is agreed to be by the SISO, it should be diarised by the SISO.

What we will do to improve

  • SEND Implementation Support Officers (SISO) will be provided with a practice guidance note to consider as to whether a diarised check in is required to monitor the child’s progress. This will be reported on the ASK SALI monthly data for assurance.

Recommendation 13a

The EP service should devise a specific strategy for improvement of its delivery of EP advices within 12 weeks of an EHCNA request. This should include:

Measures to ensure the data on timeliness of EHCNA advice is recorded in a single place.

What we will do to improve

  • Data will be recorded centrally, and the Educational Psychologist (EP) Senior leadership team will review the data monthly.
  • We will ensure all data pertaining to the EPs regarding the timeliness of EHCNA advice is held centrally. Monthly data reports will be produced from this.

Recommendation 13b

An appropriate target for delivery of EHCNA advice by week 12 between now and September 2024 (when the additional EPs will start in their role).

What we will do to improve

  • We have been carrying out a review of our Educational Psychologist (EP) capacity and the level of advice requests. From June to August 2024, 370 pieces of advice would be completed in this timeframe.  

Recommendation 13c

The measures, including use of locum EPs, for ensuring the target is met between now and September 2024.

What we will do to improve

  • As part of our continuous review into staff capacity within the EP establishment, we will fully utilise both in house and locum Educational Psychologists, expand capacity wherever possible, quantify advice giving and maintain oversight and review of how capacity can meet need between now and September.

Recommendation 13d

An appropriate target for delivery of EHCNA advice by week 12 from September 2024.

What we will do to improve

  • Our in-depth assessment of capacity and the predicted level of advice requests has enabled us to set an appropriate target for the delivery of EHCNA advice by week 12 from September 2024. From September 2024 we will have capacity within our establishment to deliver 700 EHCNA pieces of advice by week 12 per year.

Recommendation 13e

Any additional measures required to meet the target from September 2024.

What we will do to improve

  • As part of our Educational Psychologist workforce strategy we have recruited 8 new Assistant Educational Psychologists. The post holders are due to start their induction in September and will support EPs in collating information for Education, Health and Care Needs assessments and providing training for settings.
  • Five newly qualified Educational Psychologists will be joining us in September 2024
  • We are creating specialist Educational Psychologist posts as a means of recruiting and retaining more EPs. As part of this, we are creating opportunities within main grade posts to support with projects across Health and Children’s Services.  An example of this is the work underway supporting the Autism Diagnostic Pathway by undertaking assessments with paediatricians to inform potential diagnoses.

Recommendation 13f

The strategy, and the success of the strategy against targets, should be reported to the Education, Libraries and Lifelong Learning (ELLL) by the end of January 2025.

What we will do to improve

  • We will ensure the strategy and a report on performance against targets is presented to the Education, Libraries and Lifelong Learning (ELLL) Panel in January 2025.
  • The Education Psychologist Senior Leadership Team will review performance data monthly, which will be used to inform the report.

Recommendation 14

For the Council to seek assurance from the Trust that it will be made aware at the monthly Therapies steering group meeting if 95% of SLT advices for EHCNAs were not delivered within 30 working days that month. 

What we will do to improve

  • The Council has in-depth, monthly reporting arrangements in place with the Trust via the Therapies Steering Group and commissioning arrangements.
  • We will ensure the Group reports on progress in achieving the 95% of SLT advices at each meeting. If the target is not achieved, this will be escalated to senior leadership, and actions will be put in place to meet the target.

Recommendation 15

Add to the monthly child level reports the number of EHC Plans which have been issued within 20 weeks, where all advice has been provided by week 12.

What we will do to improve

  • We will include this information in the monthly Inclusion and Skills Performance Dashboard.

Recommendation 16

Where a decision is made to carry out an EHCNA, the allocated Children's Information and Advice Officer (CIAO) will diarise key points to proactively check the progress of the case and update the parents as necessary. If there is any delay, or likely delay, the parents will be informed of the reasons and be provided with timescales for resolution of the issue. If this is a telephone call, then it should be followed up by a short email.

What we will do to improve

  • We will put a process in place for managers to review the workflow to identify any cases at risk of missing the 6-week deadline. This will include team leads having weekly meetings with the Children's Information and Advice Officer (CIAO) and SEND Information Advice Guidance Officers (SENDIAGO) with SEND Implementation Support Officers (SISO)
  • We will implement checkpoints at week 10, 12, 16 and 20 for the Children's Information and Advice Officer (CIAO) to review missing information and contact advice givers to ask for an update on the status of the advice.
  • If there is any delay, we will communicate with parents the reasons for the delay and timescales for the resolution by email.
  • We will continue to work with colleagues and seek feedback from parent/carers during the design phase of the EHCP Portal to ensure families have access to key information pertaining to the status of the EHC Needs Assessment Request

Recommendation 17

The Council policy on whether to issue an EHC Plan where one or more assessments are outstanding at 20 weeks is made clear to Education Health and Care Co-ordinators (EHCCos) in induction and training materials.

What we will do to improve

  • As part of our continued development of the SEND Academy model we will refresh applicable training materials used for new and existing staff.

 

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