Disagree with your LA's decision? Mediation and appeals explained

Disagreeing with your local authority about your child’s EHCP is common, and the law gives you ways to challenge a decision. This post explains the main routes. If you are tracking letters, dates and decisions as you go, SENguru is building free tools to help, and there is more at the end.

A few terms first

• EHCP means Education, Health and Care Plan.
• LA means local authority, the council responsible for the plan.
• SEND Tribunal is the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability), an independent body that hears these appeals.
• Mediation is a meeting, led by an independent mediation adviser, where you and the LA try to resolve the disagreement.

What decisions can you appeal?

You can appeal to the SEND Tribunal if the LA (GOV.UK):

• refuses to carry out an EHC needs assessment or reassessment
• refuses to create an EHCP after an assessment
• refuses to change the education sections of an existing plan (sections B, F and I)
• decides your child no longer needs a plan

You can also appeal if you do not agree with the plan the LA has made. The right of appeal comes from section 51 of the Children and Families Act 2014.

You must be told about mediation

When the LA makes a decision that you can appeal, or makes, amends or replaces a plan, it must tell you about your right to mediation and about the need for a mediation certificate before making certain appeals (section 52).

The notice must include the contact details of the mediation adviser, the timescales for asking for mediation, and how to tell the LA that you want to go ahead (regulation 32).

What is a mediation certificate?

In most cases you must talk to a mediation adviser before you appeal. The adviser explains how mediation works. If you choose to go ahead, you meet the LA to talk through the problem. At the end you are given a mediation certificate, which you need if you still want to appeal. If you do not have one, you will need to tell the tribunal why (GOV.UK).

Mediation is not needed if your appeal is only about which school or other institution your child should attend, which is Section I of the plan (same GOV.UK page).

You are not forced to agree anything in mediation. It is a chance to be heard, and it sometimes resolves things without a tribunal.

Watch the deadlines

Appeals have strict time limits, and they run from the date on the LA’s decision letter. The limits are not repeated here because they can be affected by mediation, so check the dates in your letter and confirm them with IPSEA or SOS!SEN as soon as you receive a decision. If you are close to a deadline, get advice straight away.

Practical steps

These are suggestions, not legal requirements:

1. Note the date on the decision letter and put the dates in your calendar.
2. Ask for reasons in writing if the letter does not explain the decision clearly.
3. Gather your evidence: reports, correspondence and your own log of what you see at home.
4. Ask for the mediation adviser’s details if they are not in the letter.
5. Get free advice from IPSEA, SOS!SEN, Contact or your local SENDIASS, the free and impartial information and advice service in your area. GOV.UK also points families to these services and to legal aid eligibility checks (GOV.UK).

How SENguru can help

SENguru is an asset-locked community interest company (CIC) founded by two SEND parents. We are building free tools: a correspondence tracker, a behaviour and communication log, a plain-English guide with deadline tracking, and EHC plan draft review. Keeping dates and evidence in one place can make a stressful stretch more manageable. We are nearly ready for beta testers, and the free version is planned for early 2027. Join the waitlist at senguru.co.uk.

This post is general information, not legal advice. For advice on your situation, contact IPSEA or SOS!SEN.