✨Welcome to the EHCP Community Newsletter!✨

We’re thrilled to have you as part of this exclusive community of professionals dedicated to transforming the EHCP process. As champions of innovation in SEND services, you’re at the forefront of shaping how AI can support better outcomes for children, families, and caseworkers alike.

In our weekly newsletter you will find curated articles, thought pieces, success stories, and expert insights to help you understand how new types of technology and training can SEND services. So do engage, read the articles that interest you and share any perspectives you have as we all seek to make a lasting difference to lives of children and young people.

To ensure you never miss an edition, please add [email protected] to your contact list.

SEND CHALLENGES

Resolving the SEND Crisis as Leaders Demand Immediate Government Action and Funding

The SEND crisis demands urgent attention as exclusions rise, particularly among SEND pupils. School leaders highlight inadequate guidance, inconsistent practices across regions, and insufficient funding. There's a call for national SEND standards, increased mental health support, and sustainable funding solutions. Government action is critical to address these systemic issues.

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS

From Backlogs to Brilliance: How AI Is Redefining EHCP Creation

The UK government’s renewed focus on AI adoption across public services marks a pivotal moment for local authorities. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s call for bold, ambitious approaches to AI sets the stage for transformation in critical areas like Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).

EHCPs are vital for ensuring children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) get the tailored support they need to thrive.

In 2024 alone, councils drafted over 84,000 EHCPs, while costs and demands continued to rise. The system is stretched—and families are feeling the strain.

That’s where AI can step in.

Our latest report, From Backlogs to Brilliance: How AI is Redefining EHCP Creation, explores how AI is tackling these challenges head-on. Tools like Agilisys Transform's EHCP tool are revolutionizing the process by automating administrative tasks, improving the personalisation of plans, and delivering more consistent results across regions. These innovations save time and money while allowing SEND caseworkers to focus on what matters most: supporting children and their families.

By acting now, local authorities can align with the government’s AI agenda and make a real difference for children with SEND.

👉 Read the full report and request your own personalised report for your council here

SEND INQUIRY

Lowestoft MP Urges Evidence Submission for Inquiry into SEND System Crisis

Lowestoft MP Jess Asato calls for evidence submissions to a national inquiry addressing the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) crisis. The inquiry, led by the Education Select Committee, seeks to improve experiences, particularly tackling unmet needs, diagnosis delays, and healthcare access issues, aiming for significant reforms. EOTAS plans provide bespoke education for children unsuited to mainstream schooling, aiming to meet specific needs. The article highlights examples like Jack and James, demonstrating personalised plans with one-to-one tutoring and therapy, illustrating potential benefits. EOTAS can be crucial but requires careful, often challenging, assembly and execution.

I have been an EHC Plan writer and SEND Caseworker for approximately 13 years and have tried various approaches to building a compliant and person-centred EHC Plan. In the past, putting together and editing the EHCP could take anything from half a day to a day and a half, depending on the complexity of the plan, i.e. how many professional reports there are.

Fast forward to 2025 and my plan writing has been transformed by using EHCP Plus! I open up the tool and upload the documents into the secure, encrypted environment and press ‘go’! The tool takes around 5 minutes to write the EHCP using the information in the professional reports to populate the appropriate areas. I then go through and edit the ‘output’. This process dramatically reduces the time it takes me to write an EHC Plan from scratch by taking out the ‘draft building’ step. As the tool also summarises the information from the professional reports, this also reduces the editing time. The overall process now only takes an average of 1-1.5 hours.

By speeding up the process of drafting an EHC Plan, EHCP Plus frees up Case workers’ time, supporting them to meet statutory timeframes, liaise with the professionals involved and spend more time working with families and children. Our team at Agilisys has been working with SEND teams up and down the country.

If you are a SEND Caseworker, Plan writer or Team manager (either interim or employed) and you would like to find out more, do get in touch with me.

EDUCATION CRISIS

SEND System Struggles as Demand Surges, Urgent Reform Needed, Says Minister

The Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, states the SEND system in Darlington is inadequate as demand increases by 13.5%. Schools are at capacity for special educational needs. Government investments and reforms are underway, emphasising early support. Child poverty in the North East remains a pressing issue requiring urgent attention.

EDUCATION ACCESS

Diabetic Child Denied School Placement Due to Perceived Resource Constraints

A five-year-old girl with type 1 diabetes was initially denied a school place due to "significant needs." The school lacked resources and an EHCP. Despite prior educational settings accepting her, the refusal disrupted Maisie's education. A place has now been confirmed, resuming on 16 January.

YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS 🗳️