Parent's Input to EHCP This template has a range of uses and is ideally suited to the new Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP) which came into force in England in September 2014. Independent Supporters could use it for recording the information provided by parents when the Local Authority is carrying out an EHCP assessment for their son or daughter. This would provide parents contribution to Part A and to other sections of the plan particularly where they have developed their own strategies for managing certain situations. Even in Local Authorities with high delegation, meaning many needs can be supported by the Local Offer, using this approach can still be a valuable exercise in terms of gaining a comprehensive picture of the child/young person’s needs and interests as well as sharing the strategies and methods of support the parents have identified that work. The template generates a helpful document for parents to share with schools and other professionals, supporting the principle of parents only needing to “Tell it Onceâ€. This can be particularly helpful if parents are struggling to get others to appreciate the impact their son or daughter’s difficulties have on their everyday life away from school or the lengths they have to go to, to accommodate them.
This template may also prove useful when parents are frustrated because they consider the professionals involved with their son or daughter, are failing to recognise or understand their individual talents or ambitions alongside their needs. If we consider the school to be a stepping stone i.e. a place that prepares someone for the next phase of their life, therefore, talents or ambitions need to continue beyond each stage so need nurturing and developing too. Parents may consider some of these to be more important than other areas of school life, which they may perceive as being of little or no relevance to their son or daughter. By sharing this information it may be possible for school to provide them with some different opportunities enabling them to; experience success, develop their confidence, motivate them, transfer their skills to another area of school-life, develop them further or utilise them to overcome some of their difficulties. This may include adapting or adopting strategies that parents have found helpful in a different environment e.g. at home, at cubs/brownies/scouts, theatre club, swimming club, martial arts classes, with a child-minder etc. Such information has been known to change the professional’s perception of the child/young person and see them in a new light.
