The LA will look at the request for a statutory assessment and will tell you (normally within six weeks) whether they will carry out an assessment. As soon as the LA start looking at the request for a statutory assessment they will write to you and:

  • tell you that they are considering whether to carry out a statutory assessment;
  • tell you how they will carry out the statutory assessment;
  • explain the timescales (which will be no longer than six months in all);
  • give you the name of the person at the LA who will be your point of contact;
  • ask you to give written or spoken reasons, called evidence, about why you think your child should or should not be assessed (you have at least 29 days to send this in to the LA);
  • tell you about the LA’s parent partnership service who will be able to help you with independent advice and support;
  • ask you if there is anyone else you would like the LA to talk to about your child;
  • ask you for any evidence or opinions you have collected or intend to get; and
  • encourage you to provide written or spoken evidence for the LA to consider (the LA or the parent partnership service can help you make a written version).

LAs have six weeks to tell you whether they will carry out a statutory assessment of your child. If LAs take longer than six weeks, you should ask the named officer to explain the delay. If you are not happy with the answer or reason for the delay, you can talk to the local parent partnership service or ask the LA to arrange to sort out the disagreement informally through an independent person. If you are still not happy, you can complain to the Secretary of State for Education about an unreasonable delay. The Secretary of State can tell the LA to tell you whether they will carry out a statutory assessment. The LA or the parent partnership service will be able to give you details of how to make a complaint about such a delay. 

A publication entitled Special Educational Needs: A guide for parents and carers is available to download online.