The SEND Code of Practice: Key Points (Quick Guide) 

When a child or young person is struggling in education, it is easy for everything to feel blurry. Meetings happen, plans are written, support is promised, yet progress stalls. Parents may hear phrases like “we’ll monitor” or “we don’t have the funding”, while staff on the ground are juggling busy classrooms and limited time. In the middle of all that sits the SEND Code of Practice (0-25) – the main guide for how England’s education system should identify needs, put support in place, and review it properly.

This guide is written for parents, teaching assistants (TAs), teachers and Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) who want the essentials fast, without losing the practical detail that matters when things are not working. You will find clear explanations of the most important parts of the Code, who must do what, and how to use the right language and evidence when you need to challenge gaps. Throughout, you will also see ‘what good looks like’ in real settings – because knowing the rules is one thing, but applying them day to day is what makes a difference.

What is the SEND Code of Practice?

The SEND Code of Practice (0-25) is statutory guidance. In simple terms, it tells schools, colleges, local authorities, and health services in England what they must do for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. It sits alongside the Children and Families Act 2014 and related regulations, and it shapes how support should work from early years right through to further education and training. (GOV.UK)

Because it is statutory guidance, organisations are expected to follow it unless they have a very good reason not to. That matters, because it means the Code is not just ‘best practice’. It is the benchmark for decisions about SEN Support, EHC needs assessments, EHCP content, and reviews.

At its heart, the Code pushes a few key ideas that you will see repeated again and again:

• Early identification is better than waiting for failure.
• Support should be planned, purposeful and reviewed.
• Parents and young people should be involved in decisions.
• Outcomes matter – it is not enough to ‘put something in place’ if it does not help.
• Education, health and care should join up, especially where needs are complex.

If you remember one thing, remember this: the SEND system is meant to be evidence-led and child-centred. When it becomes vague, delayed, or defensive, it is drifting away from what the Code expects.

For the official document itself, many people bookmark the government page for the SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years.

SEND Code of Practice in England: Summary

A useful way to understand the Code quickly is to picture a ladder of support.

At the earliest stages, a child may need small adjustments. These might be teaching tweaks, environmental changes, or targeted help that does not require a formal plan. If those adjustments are not enough, the child should move on to SEN Support, which is a structured approach (with plans, outcomes and reviews). If SEN Support still cannot meet need – or if the child’s needs are clearly complex from the start – an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment may be requested, which can lead to an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

This is where many families and staff get stuck: schools sometimes treat SEN Support as a ‘waiting room’ where support is informal, unrecorded and rarely reviewed. However, the Code expects SEN Support to be active and planned, not passive.

A simple ‘big picture’ summary of what the Code expects looks like this:

• Identify needs early (using observations, progress data and parent voice).
• Put evidence-based support in place (not guesswork).
• Set outcomes that describe meaningful change (not just provision).
• Review impact regularly and adjust quickly.
• Involve the child or young person appropriately.
• Escalate to an EHC needs assessment when support needed is beyond what the setting can reasonably provide.

If you are trying to work out whether the system around you is functioning well, ask: “Is support being reviewed based on impact?” If the answer is no, you have found a key gap.

Who the Code Applies to: Age 0-25 Years

The Code applies to children and young people aged 0 to 25 in England who have special educational needs or disabilities, and to the organisations responsible for supporting them.

This includes:

• Early years providers (nurseries, childminders, pre-schools).
• Schools (maintained schools, academies, free schools, special schools).
• Colleges and further education settings.
• Local authorities.
• Health services (especially where they contribute to EHC assessments and EHCP provision).
• Social care services.

The 0-25 range matters because it recognises that needs do not stop at 16. Many young people need continued support into college, apprenticeships, supported internships, or training. The Code also expects a strong focus on preparation for adulthood as young people approach transition points.

That said, responsibilities shift slightly depending on age and setting. In schools, the focus is often on classroom adjustments, SEN Support and outcomes. In further education, there is more emphasis on study programmes, independence, and preparing for adult life, while still meeting legal duties.

SEND Definitions: SEN vs Disability

People often use SEN and disability interchangeably, but they are not the same thing, and the difference matters for rights and decision-making.

A child or young person has special educational needs (SEN) if they have a learning difficulty or disability that means they need special educational provision to be made for them. In practical terms, this means they need support that is ‘additional to or different from’ what is normally available for others of the same age.

A person is disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if they have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on their ability to carry out normal daily activities. (This can include many conditions that are not always recognised quickly, such as sensory processing differences, mental health conditions, and long-term medical needs.)

Here are some common scenarios that show how they overlap:

• A child can be disabled but not have SEN (e.g. a medical condition managed well in school with reasonable adjustments, without needing special educational provision).
• A child can have SEN but not meet the disability definition (e.g. a specific learning difficulty that needs targeted teaching support but may not substantially affect daily life beyond learning).
• A child can have both SEN and disability (this is very common, especially for needs such as autism, ADHD, or complex communication needs).

This matters because:

• SEN frameworks drive how support is planned and reviewed in education.
• Disability rights (reasonable adjustments, non-discrimination) apply whether or not the child is on SEN Support or has an EHCP.

If a setting says, “They don’t have SEN, so we don’t need to do anything”, it is still worth checking whether disability duties apply. Often, they do.

For many families, the most practical place to start is to read a plain-English overview like the government’s SEND guide for parents and carers.

School Duties: Identify and Support SEND

Schools have clear duties under the Code. These duties are not optional and they do not depend on funding being available.

At a practical level, schools should:

• Identify needs early, using a mix of progress data, teacher observations, wider assessments, and parent input.
• Use a graduated approach rather than waiting for a crisis.
• Put SEN Support in place for pupils who need it.
• Involve parents, and where possible the pupil, in planning and reviewing support.
• Make sure staff understand how to support needs across the school, not just in the SEN office.
• Keep good records that show what was tried, why, and what impact it had.

A frequent frustration is when families are told, “We’ll keep an eye”, with no clear plan or review date. If there is no written plan, no outcome and no review, it is very difficult to show whether support is effective. Also, it makes it hard to build evidence for an EHC needs assessment request later.

What ‘good practice’ looks like in real terms is this:

• Needs are described clearly (not just labels).
• Support is chosen for a reason, based on the child’s profile.
• Adults know who is doing what, when, and how often.
• Progress is reviewed using specific evidence, not general impressions.

The Graduated Approach: Assess-Plan-Do-Review

The graduated approach is the engine of SEN Support. It is sometimes called a cycle, because it should repeat and improve over time, rather than being a one-off meeting.

Assess

This is where the setting gathers a clear picture of need. It can include:

• Teacher assessment and observation.
• Standardised tests (where appropriate).
• Work scrutiny.
• Behaviour logs and patterns.
• Attendance and punctuality.
• Speech and language screening, motor skills checks, or sensory profiles (where available).
• Parent voice and pupil voice.

The aim is not to label. It is to understand barriers to learning and participation.

Plan

Planning should set out:

• The child’s needs and priorities.
• Outcomes (what change you want to see).
• Provision (what will be put in place).
• Who is responsible for delivering it.
• How often it will happen.
• When it will be reviewed.

Plans do not need to be complicated. However, they do need to be specific enough that everyone can follow them.

Do

This is the delivery stage. The key point here is that the class teacher remains responsible for the pupil’s progress, even when interventions are delivered by support staff. Teaching assistants are crucial, yet support should not become ‘outsourced’.

Review

Review is where the plan either becomes meaningful or becomes paperwork.

A strong review:

• Checks progress against outcomes, using evidence.
• Looks at what worked and what did not.
• Adjusts provision quickly.
• Decides whether needs are now met, still emerging, or escalating.

If the cycle repeats without meaningful improvement, it may indicate that the child needs specialist input, different provision, or an EHC needs assessment.

A helpful habit for reviews is to always answer three questions:

• What has improved, and how do we know?
• What has not improved, and what might explain that?
• What will we change next, and by when?

Reasonable Adjustments in Schools

Reasonable adjustments are a legal duty under the Equality Act 2010. They are not the same as SEN Support, although they often overlap.

Reasonable adjustments are changes a school makes to remove a disadvantage for a disabled pupil. The aim is to ensure disabled pupils can access education as fully as possible.

Adjustments can include:

• Changes to the environment (seating, lighting, quiet spaces).
• Changes to routines and expectations (movement breaks, structured transitions).
• Support with communication (visual prompts, simplified instructions).
• Assistive technology (text-to-speech, laptops, alternative recording methods).
• Adjustments to assessment (extra time, rest breaks, different formats).
• Staff training and awareness.

‘Reasonable’ depends on context, but schools should not treat it as a loophole. The better question is often: “What adjustment would remove this barrier, and is it practical?” Many highly effective adjustments cost little, but require consistency and staff understanding.

If you want a simple reference point for what disability law expects in education, many families find the Equality Act guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission helpful as a starting point.

SEN Support: What It Should Include

SEN Support should feel like a structured plan, not a loose collection of goodwill.

In real terms, strong SEN Support usually includes:

• A clear description of needs
  Not just ‘autism’ or ‘speech delay’, but what that means in school: processing speed, sensory overload, anxiety triggers, expressive language difficulties, fine motor fatigue, and so on.
• Outcomes that are specific and meaningful
  For example, “X will independently use a visual checklist to complete a three-step routine in the morning on 4/5 days” is more useful than “X will improve independence”.
• Targeted provision matched to need
  This might include small group work, targeted language support, precision teaching, or scaffolded writing support.
• In-class strategies
  High-quality teaching is the foundation. Interventions help, but classroom adjustments often make the biggest difference.
• Review dates and evidence
  Reviews should happen at least termly in many cases, and more often when needs are acute.
• Parent involvement
  Parents should not be told after decisions are made. They should be part of planning.

A practical way to sanity-check SEN Support is to ask to see the plan and look for detail. If it reads as if it could apply to almost anyone, it is probably too vague to be effective.

Here is a quick ‘what should be written down’ checklist:

• Needs (described functionally).
• Outcomes (measurable, time-bound where possible).
• Provision (frequency, duration, staff role).
• Strategies (classroom and wider).
• Review date.
• How impact will be measured.

When those basics exist, disagreements become easier to resolve, because everyone can point to the same document and the same evidence.

SENCO Role and Responsibilities

The SENCO is central to how well SEND support works in a school. However, it is important to understand what the SENCO is responsible for, and what sits elsewhere.

In most schools, the SENCO’s responsibilities include:

• Overseeing the identification of SEN.
• Coordinating SEN Support and ensuring the graduated approach is followed.
• Advising colleagues on strategies and provision.
• Coordinating external professionals and referrals.
• Supporting staff training and SEND awareness.
• Monitoring records, outcomes, and the quality of provision.
• Liaising with parents and, where appropriate, the pupil.
• Contributing to EHC needs assessment requests and EHCP reviews.

What the SENCO is not meant to be is the only person who ‘does SEND’. Teachers remain responsible for pupils in their class. Senior leaders remain responsible for resourcing and culture. Governors have oversight responsibilities too. When SEND becomes siloed, it tends to weaken.

If you are a parent and communication has broken down, a practical step is to ask for one named point of contact and one agreed communication method. Frequent, scattered messages across different staff members often increase confusion. A SENCO-led plan for communication can reduce tension and speed up action.

Education, Health and Care Plans Explained

An Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) is a legal document for children and young people whose needs cannot reasonably be met through SEN Support alone. It sets out the child’s needs, outcomes, and the provision that must be delivered.

EHCPs cover education, health and social care. However, education sections are usually the most detailed in practice, and this is often where disputes arise.

A key idea that helps many families is this: an EHCP is not only about more support hours. It is about legally enforceable provision, clarity and accountability. When provision is in an EHCP, it is far harder for services to drift or disappear quietly.

EHCPs also matter because they can name a placement and can be appealed at the SEND Tribunal if disagreements remain.

Many families find it useful to read independent explanations alongside the Code, such as the Council for Disabled Children resources or the IPSEA guidance (both are widely used reference points).

EHCP 20-week Timeline and Deadlines

The EHCP process has a legal time limit: from request for an EHC needs assessment to issuing a final EHCP should take no more than 20 weeks in most cases. (Council for Disabled Children)

It helps to break the 20 weeks into stages, because this is where delays often creep in.

While timelines can be complex, the practical ‘parent and school’ view often looks like this:

• Week 0: A request is made for an EHC needs assessment (by a parent, young person, or school, and others can also make a request).
• By week 6: The local authority decides whether to assess.
• Assessment phase: Advice is gathered from education, health, social care, and others as needed.
• Draft EHCP issued (if the local authority decides to issue a plan).
• 15 days minimum: The parent/young person can comment and request a particular school/college.
• By week 20: The final EHCP should be issued. (Council for Disabled Children)

There are some exceptions (e.g. specific circumstances where advice is delayed), but many delays are administrative rather than genuinely unavoidable. When families are told “it’s taking longer”, it is reasonable to ask: “Which stage are we in, and what is the new date for the next step?”

A practical tip: keep a simple timeline log. Record:

• Date request was sent.
• Date acknowledgement received.
• Date decision to assess arrived (or should have arrived).
• Dates advice was requested and received.
• Dates draft and final plan were issued.

If you later need to escalate concerns, that timeline becomes powerful evidence.

Section F Provision: What Must Be Specified

Section F is one of the most important parts of an EHCP because it describes the special educational provision that must be delivered. If Section F is weak, the EHCP may look impressive but fail in practice.

The key expectation is that provision should be specific, detailed and quantified where needed. Vague wording is a common problem. Phrases like ‘access to’, ‘opportunities for’, or ‘regular support’ sound positive, but they are hard to enforce.

Strong Section F provision usually includes:

• What the support is (e.g. a structured language programme).
• Who delivers it (trained TA, specialist teacher, therapist).
• How often (sessions per week).
• How long (minutes per session).
• Group size (1:1, pair, small group).
• Any staffing expertise required (training, supervision, specialist input).
• Where it happens (in class, withdrawal, sensory space).
• How progress will be tracked.

For example:

• Vague: “X will have support with social communication.”
• Better: “X will receive a weekly 30-minute 1:1 session delivered by a trained adult using an evidence-based social communication programme, with daily in-class visual supports reviewed every half term.”

If you are reviewing a plan, one helpful method is the ‘stranger test’. Ask: “If a new member of staff joined tomorrow, could they deliver this provision exactly as intended?” If the answer is no, it probably needs tightening.

Local Offer: What Councils Must Publish

Every local authority must publish a Local Offer – a clear set of information about what provision is available for children and young people with SEN and disabilities in that area, across education, health and care. This duty comes from the Children and Families Act 2014. 

In theory, the Local Offer should make it easier to understand:

• What support exists in schools and settings.
• What specialist services are available.
• How to access assessments and referrals.
• What short breaks and social care support exist.
• How SEN Support and EHCP processes work locally.
• Where to get advice (including impartial information services).

In practice, Local Offers vary. Some are clear and updated often. Others can be hard to navigate. Still, they are worth using, because they show what the local authority says is available. That can be helpful when you are trying to challenge a gap.

Two practical ways to use the Local Offer well:

• Use it to find the local impartial advice service (often SENDIASS). Many families benefit from contacting their local SENDIASS service early, because they can help with wording, meetings and process.
• Use it to compare what is happening with what is described as available. If a service is listed but inaccessible in reality, that mismatch can be raised.

Personal Budgets and Direct Payments for EHCPs

Personal budgets can be confusing, yet they matter for some families, especially when creative provision is needed or when services are difficult to access.

A personal budget is an amount of money identified to deliver some of the provision in an EHCP, where the local authority agrees this is appropriate. It can sometimes be taken as a direct payment, allowing the family (or young person) to arrange certain support themselves, within agreed rules.

It is not a simple ‘cash alternative’ to an EHCP. It is a way of delivering specific provision differently.

Personal budgets can sometimes cover elements of:

• Social care support (e.g. short breaks).
• Health provision (where relevant arrangements exist).
• Certain education-related support (in some circumstances).

However, personal budgets do not replace the duty to secure provision. The provision must still happen. The method of delivery is what changes.

If you are considering a personal budget, practical questions to ask include:

• Which part of the plan could this realistically fund?
• Who would employ or arrange the support?
• What evidence will be needed to show it is meeting outcomes?
• What happens if the provision arranged privately breaks down?
• What monitoring does the local authority require?

Many families also explore whether a specialist occupational therapy (OT) programme, communication support, or mentoring could be arranged more flexibly through agreed routes. This is very individual, so it is sensible to get advice before committing.

Disagreements, Mediation and SEND Tribunal Appeals

When disagreements happen, it is easy to feel powerless, especially if communication has already become strained. The good news is that there are structured routes to challenge decisions, and the process is more common than many people realise.

Disagreements often fall into these categories:

• Refusal to carry out an EHC needs assessment.
• Refusal to issue an EHCP after assessment.
• Disagreement about EHCP content (especially Section B needs, Section F provision, and outcomes).
• Disagreement about placement (the named school or type of setting).
• Disagreement about amendments after annual review.

Step 1: Try to resolve informally, but document everything

Before jumping into formal steps, it can help to write a calm summary email after meetings:

• What was agreed
• What will happen next
• By when
• Who is responsible

This reduces misunderstandings. It also creates a record if things drift.

Step 2: Use disagreement resolution or mediation routes

Mediation is often part of the process when appealing certain decisions. Mediation advice is a specific step, and the mediation adviser must issue a certificate in line with the regulations when mediation is pursued before appeal. (Legislation.gov.uk)

Even when mediation does not fully resolve issues, it can clarify the real points of disagreement and sometimes leads to partial agreement that reduces stress later.

Step 3: Appeal to the SEND Tribunal

The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) handles appeals against local authority decisions in relation to EHC assessments and plans. (GOV.UK)

The Tribunal process can feel daunting, yet it is designed to be accessible. Many parents represent themselves, although some get support from charities, advocates, or legal representatives.

If you want the official overview of what the Tribunal covers, the government page for the First-tier Tribunal (SEND) sets out the scope and contact details.

A practical ‘challenge gaps confidently’ checklist

If you are preparing for disagreement resolution, mediation, or appeal, these habits help:

• Keep a single folder of evidence (reports, emails, schoolwork samples, behaviour logs).
• Build a timeline of events and missed deadlines.
• Write down the impact on the child using clear examples (learning, attendance, mental health, friendships).
• Focus on needs and provision, not labels.
• When asking for provision, link it to evidence and outcomes.
• Ask for decisions in writing.

Also, remember that ‘lack of funding’ should not be used as a reason to refuse assessment when evidence suggests needs may require an EHCP. The system is under strain, yet legal duties remain. Recent reporting has highlighted widespread delays in issuing EHCPs within the legal timeframe. (The Times)

Conclusion

The SEND Code of Practice (0-25) is meant to bring clarity and consistency to a system that can otherwise feel uncertain. It sets out a straightforward expectation: identify needs early, put structured support in place, review its impact, and escalate when the setting cannot reasonably meet the need. When you understand the Code’s core duties and timelines, it becomes easier to spot when support has slipped into vague promises, unmeasured interventions, or delayed decision-making.

For parents, the most powerful tools are clear evidence, written records, and confident use of the right language – needs, outcomes, provision, review. For teaching assistants, teachers and SENCOs, the Code offers a shared framework to keep support purposeful, joined up, and focused on what actually improves a child’s day-to-day experience of school.

When support is not working, the aim is not conflict for its own sake. It is clarity, accountability and progress. With the Code as your reference point, it becomes far easier to say, calmly and firmly: “This is the need. This is the impact. This is what has been tried. This is what the law expects next.”