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• 06 Aug 2025

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Super Simple summary to help a parent explain the law to a child
You don’t need a doctor to say you need help at school before asking for a special plan. If school isn’t working for you and you need more help, your family or teacher can ask the council to look at what help you need, even if you haven’t seen a doctor.

Summary in simple English
You do not need to have a doctor’s opinion before you or someone else applies for an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
Anyone can ask the local authority to carry out an Education Health and Care needs assessment. This can be done by a parent, young person, school or college.
The local authority must consider the request and decide whether the child may need special help that goes beyond what schools usually give. A doctor’s opinion is not required at the application stage.
If an assessment is agreed, the local authority will then collect advice from different people, and that is when they will usually ask for medical advice.

Draft technical answer
An opinion from a doctor is not required in order to request an Education Health and Care needs assessment under section 36(1) of the Children and Families Act 2014.

Section 36(1) provides that a request for an assessment may be made by:

a child’s parent

a young person over compulsory school age

a person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution

There is no requirement for medical evidence or a doctor’s opinion to be included in that request. The legal threshold the local authority must apply is whether the child may have special educational needs and may require provision through an Education Health and Care Plan – this is a low threshold.

As explained in the Code of Practice (2015) at paragraph 9.3:

Local authorities must carry out an EHC needs assessment for children or young people who may need special educational provision to be made through an EHC plan.

Where a local authority agrees to assess, it is then under a duty to obtain medical advice and information from a health care professional under The Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014, regulation 6(1)(d). This means that medical advice becomes part of the assessment process but is not required to initiate the process.

There is no requirement in law for a doctor’s opinion to be included at the application stage. However, if a child has medical needs that relate to their special educational needs or are relevant to whether or not special provision is required, that may later be addressed through medical evidence obtained as part of the statutory assessment.

It is worth noting that in practice, families sometimes find that including medical information at the application stage can help demonstrate the complexity or persistence of a child’s needs. Nonetheless, its absence cannot lawfully be a reason for a local authority to refuse to carry out a statutory assessment.

Answers from the No-nonsense Guides

Noddy No-nonsense Guide to SEN law

Q21 > What information or evidence do I need to apply for an EHC Needs Assessment?

You do not have to provide medical or other professional evidence when making a request for assessment – although it is usually helpful to do so. When the local authority considers whether to carry out an EHC needs assessment, it must consider the evidence already available, including that which is submitted with the request. The test is whether the child or young person may have SEN and may need special educational provision to be made through an EHC Plan.
Link to Q21 in Guide

Answers from the Support SEND Ask Experts

https://supportsendkids.org/questions/ehcp-assessment-evidence-what-do-i-need
What evidence do I need for a statutory assessment application (EHCP)?
You do not need to have a diagnosis or expert reports to make a request. The legal test is that the child may have SEN and may need an EHCP. Diagnosis or expert reports can help but they are not necessary to request an assessment. If the LA agrees to assess, they will seek professional advice (including medical) as part of that process.

Relevant Statutes, Regulations, Codes and Case Law

Children and Families Act 2014, section 36(1)

A local authority must secure an EHC needs assessment for a child or young person if the authority is of the opinion that the child or young person may have special educational needs and may need an Education, Health and Care plan.

SEND Code of Practice 2015, paragraph 9.3

Local authorities must carry out an EHC needs assessment for children or young people who may need special educational provision to be made through an EHC plan.

The Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014, regulation 6(1)(d)

The local authority must seek advice and information from a health care professional identified by the responsible commissioning body during the assessment process.

Practical hints and tips

While medical evidence is not required, it may be useful if available, particularly to support the level or type of special educational provision needed

Some families include letters from school staff or other professionals even if they do not have medical reports

If a medical professional has already identified a condition or disability that affects learning, it can be helpful to reference that in the request, but it is not necessary

Do not delay making a request just because a medical report is not available

Would you like me to check if any new guidance or cases have recently clarified this further?

RA

Rachel Amos

06 Aug 2025

This is helpful

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