Your child has a finalised Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). But Section I, the part that names where they will go, is blank, names only a type of school, or names a school that is now turning you away. That gap is frightening, and it can feel like nobody is responsible for fixing it. Someone is.
“We are full” is not, on its own, a lawful reason for a school to refuse a child with an EHCP. The council must name a placement in Section I, and a named school has an absolute duty to admit. The only lawful reasons to refuse your chosen school sit in section 39(4) of the Children and Families Act 2014.
This guide is for parents and carers in England. The rules here come from Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice 0 to 25. Scotland and Wales use different systems, so if you are outside England this will not apply to you.
What does it mean when no school is named on your child’s EHCP?
It means the part of the plan that should secure a place, Section I, is not doing its job yet, and your child may be left without a setting that has to take them. A finalised EHCP normally names a specific school in Section I. When it does, the rest of the system clicks into place: that school must admit, and the council must fund the support.
There are three situations that bring parents here. The plan names no school at all. The plan names only a type of school, such as “specialist provision for autism,” with no actual building attached. Or the plan names a real school, but that school is refusing to let your child in.
Each is a different problem with a different fix, and this guide works through all three. What they share is one thing worth holding on to. The local authority (the council department that issues and maintains the plan, also called the LA) carries the duty here, not you.
Section I is one of the few sections of an EHCP you can appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal, along with Sections B and F. If you want a refresher on what each section does, our guide to requesting an EHCP assessment covers how the plan is built.
The council does not get to leave Section I blank indefinitely and treat the search for a place as your job. Even while the right setting is being found, the council still owes your child the special educational provision in the plan, and it may owe them interim education too. We will come to both.
Is “we are full” a lawful reason for a school to refuse your child?
No. A school being full, short of staff, or not on the council’s preferred list is not, by itself, a lawful reason to refuse a child with an EHCP. The lawful reasons live in section 39(4) of the Children and Families Act 2014, and “we have no spaces” is not among them.
This trips up a lot of families, because “we are full” sounds final and reasonable. Schools say it, councils repeat it, and parents assume there is nothing to be done. There usually is.
The confusion comes from one of the genuine lawful grounds sitting nearby. The council can refuse a school where attendance would be “incompatible with the provision of efficient education for others” or with “the efficient use of resources.” A school close to capacity sometimes tries to stretch “we are full” into that test. The courts have not let them.
The threshold is high. The impact has to be “so great as to be incompatible” with educating other children, not just inconvenient or a bit more expensive. A placement that needs minor changes or modest extra resources does not meet it. And the burden of proof sits with the council, not with you.
The table below sorts the reasons a school or council might give into the ones the law actually allows and the ones it does not.
If a school or council leans on one of the lower three rows, write back and ask which of the three section 39(4) grounds they are relying on. Ask them to set out the evidence for it. Often there is no real answer, because the real reason was capacity all along.
What are the only lawful reasons a council can refuse your chosen school?
There are exactly three, and they are narrow. You have a statutory right to ask for a particular school under section 39 of the Children and Families Act 2014, and the council must name it unless it can prove one of the three grounds applies.
The first ground is that the school is unsuitable for your child’s age, ability, aptitude or special educational needs. The second is that your child’s attendance would be incompatible with the efficient education of other pupils. The third is that it would be incompatible with the efficient use of resources.
That is the complete list. There is no fourth ground hiding in the small print. Framework status, block contracts, and “we usually use these schools” are administrative habits, not law, and they cannot override your right to request a setting.
You make the request during the draft-plan stage. After the council sends you the draft EHCP, you have at least 15 days to respond and name the school you want, under the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014, regulation 13. The council must then consult the school you have asked for.
Schools are expected to respond to that consultation within 15 days under paragraph 9.83 of the SEND Code of Practice. That is guidance, not a hard deadline the school can be punished for missing, so chase the council if the school goes quiet rather than waiting indefinitely.
Even when the council does refuse your chosen school, it cannot simply walk away. Where one of the three grounds applies, section 39(5) says the council must still either name a different school it thinks is appropriate, or specify a type of school it thinks is appropriate. It does not get to leave Section I empty.
The burden of proof matters more than parents realise. You only have to show the school you want is suitable. The council has to affirmatively prove its refusal ground. That is a big part of why so many placement disputes go the family’s way at appeal.
Does a named school actually have to admit your child?
Yes. Once a school is named in Section I of a finalised EHCP, it must admit your child. This is an absolute legal duty under section 43(2) of the Children and Families Act 2014, which says the school “must admit the child or young person for whom the plan is maintained.”
This is one of the strongest duties in SEND law. It is not a polite request and it is not conditional on the school agreeing. If your child’s plan names the school, the school has to take them, and the duty continues until the plan is formally changed.
The duty applies to the settings listed in section 43(1). That list covers maintained schools and nursery schools in England, academies, further education institutions, and non-maintained special schools. It also covers independent special schools approved by the Secretary of State under section 41 of the same Act, so most state-funded and approved settings are caught.
One exception is worth knowing. A wholly independent school that is not approved under section 41 is not caught by the duty to admit. For those settings, the school has to agree and offer a place before it can be named at all. For everything else on that list, naming means admitting.
If a named school still refuses, get the refusal in writing. Schools often say no verbally, so follow up with an email confirming what was said and asking them to confirm in writing whether they will comply with their section 43(2) duty. That written record is the foundation of any challenge.
Refusing to admit when named is unlawful, and it can be challenged by judicial review, a court process for testing whether a public body has acted lawfully. The duty does not pause while the school complains about being named. As long as the school is in Section I, it must take your child.
What if the EHCP names only a type of school, not a named one?
When Section I names only a type of school, no individual school is under a duty to admit, which is exactly why a type-only placement leaves your child exposed. A type-only entry might read “specialist secondary provision for autism” with no actual school attached. It looks like a placement. Legally, it is a gap.
The risk is real. Because no specific school has the section 43 duty, your child can be left in limbo with no setting obliged to take them. In PS v London Borough of Wandsworth, a 2025 Upper Tribunal case, a council removed a child from their school roll after a type-only ruling, without consulting the parents first.
The table below shows why a named school and a type-only entry are not the same thing.
| A named school | Only a type named Weaker | |
|---|---|---|
| Who must admit | The named school, under section 43(2) | No school is under a duty to admit |
| Legal effect | A real, enforceable place | A description, not a place |
| Risk to your child | Protected by the duty to admit | Risk of being left without a setting |
| Council’s ongoing duties | Secure Section F provision | Still must secure Section F provision |
| If your child is out of school | Interim education duty applies | Interim education duty still applies |
The reassuring half of this is that the council’s other duties do not switch off when Section I is type-only. It must still secure the special educational provision in Section F under section 42. It must still consult the schools you ask it to consult. And if your child is out of education, the interim duty under section 19 of the Education Act 1996 still bites.
The way to avoid a type-only outcome at appeal is to put forward at least one specific, evidenced school. If neither you nor the council names an actual school, the Tribunal may name only a type. Bring an Ofsted report, a school visit note, and ideally a letter from the school confirming it can meet your child’s needs.
If you are already stuck with a type-only Section I, keep pressing the council in writing to consult specific schools and to confirm how it is securing Section F in the meantime. A type-only entry is not the end of the road, but it does mean the duty to admit is not yet protecting your child, so the pressure has to stay on.
What education should your child get while no school is named?
Your child should still be educated, even with Section I unresolved. Two duties run in parallel while a placement is sorted out, and neither waits for Section I to be filled in.
The first is the council’s duty to secure the provision in the plan. Under section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014, once the council maintains an EHCP it “must secure the specified special educational provision for the child or young person.” That is an absolute, non-delegable duty, and a missing school place is not an excuse to stop delivering Section F. Our guide on what to do when an EHCP is not being delivered goes deeper on enforcing that duty.
The second is the interim education duty. If your child is of compulsory school age and out of education, the council must arrange suitable education under section 19 of the Education Act 1996. That section requires each council in England to arrange “suitable education at school or otherwise than at school” for children who “may not for any period receive suitable education” because of illness, exclusion “or otherwise.”
A child stuck without a named place falls squarely inside “or otherwise.” Section 19(6) defines suitable education as “efficient education suitable to his age, ability and aptitude and to any special educational needs he may have.” Five hours of tuition a week is rarely that.
Councils sometimes offer a few hours of home tuition and call it “suitable.” Full-time, or properly justified part-time, is the standard. If your child is offered a token package while no school is named, ask in writing why it is suitable and how it meets section 19(6).
So if your child is sitting at home, you can ask for two things at once: confirmation of how the council is securing Section F, and interim education under section 19 . Put both in writing, and keep a record of every day your child is out of school. That record becomes evidence if you later need the Ombudsman or a court.
How do you challenge a missing or wrong placement, and do you need mediation first?
You can go straight to the SEND Tribunal, and for a placement-only dispute you do not need to attend mediation first. This is one of the most useful facts in this whole guide, because mediation is often where momentum is lost.
For most EHCP appeals, you have to contact a mediation adviser before you can appeal. Placement is the exception. Under section 55 of the Children and Families Act 2014, the mediation requirement does not apply to an appeal concerning only the school named, the type specified, or “the fact that an EHC plan does not name a school or other institution.”
In plain terms: if your appeal is only about Section I, whether it names the wrong school, only a type, or no school at all, you can lodge it directly with the First-tier Tribunal (the SEND Tribunal). No mediation certificate needed.
The deadline is two months from the date on the council’s decision letter. Because no mediation certificate is required for a Section I-only appeal, that two-month window is the one to watch.
It is worth knowing how these appeals tend to go. In 2024/25, 25,000 SEND appeals were registered and 20,000 were disposed of, and 99% of decided appeals went in the appellant family’s favour. The system is genuinely weighted towards parents who appeal.
Placement is one of the most commonly appealed parts of an EHCP, and the headline picture above holds for Section I disputes too: most families who appeal come away with a better outcome than the one the council first offered.
Our guide on what actually happens at a SEND Tribunal walks through the hearing itself. The Tribunal cannot, however, force a school to keep admitting a child after a type-only ruling, because it has no enforcement powers. That is why the next section focuses on the practical steps that protect your child outside the courtroom too.
What can you do right now if no school is named?
Start by writing things down and putting the council on notice in writing, because a clear paper trail is what every later step relies on. You do not have to wait for the council to act first.
The ladder below moves from the quickest steps to the formal routes. You will often resolve things on the lower rungs, so work up only as far as you need to.
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Get everything in writingConfirm any verbal refusal by email and ask the school or council to put their reasons in writing
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Notify the councilTell the special educational needs (SEN) team in writing that no school is named, or that a named school is refusing, and ask what it will do
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Request interim educationIf your child is out of school, ask in writing for section 19 provision and confirmation of how Section F is being secured
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Complain or escalateUse the council’s complaints process, and the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman if it stalls
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Appeal or seek judicial reviewLodge a Section I appeal within two months, or consider judicial review where a named school refuses to admit
A quick word on the formal routes, because parents mix them up. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (the LGSCO, which investigates council maladministration) is the route when the council has handled things badly but the matter does not carry a right of appeal. The SEND Tribunal is the route for the content of Section I itself. Judicial review is the route when a named school flatly refuses to admit, or the council ignores a clear legal duty.
If your child is 16 or over, one extra point applies. Most of these rights transfer to the young person at the end of compulsory school age. So where this guide says “you,” a young person aged 16 or over can usually act on their own behalf, with your support if they want it.
You are not powerless here, even when the term is starting and there is still no place. The duties in this guide exist precisely because children fall through this gap, and the law puts the job of closing it on the council.
Getting help
You do not have to work through this alone. Several organisations give free, specialist advice on school placements and EHCPs.
IPSEA (Independent Provider of Special Education Advice) offers free legal advice on EHCPs, Section I placements, and appeals. Its guide to choosing a school or college with an EHC plan explains the naming rules, and its model letters include ready-to-use templates for requesting a school and challenging a refusal to consult.
SOS!SEN runs a free, independent helpline and advice service for families dealing with SEND law, including disputes about which school is named and refusals to admit.
Your local SEND Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) gives free, impartial, confidential advice in your area. You can find your nearest service through the Council for Disabled Children.
How the assistant can help
The free SEND Parents Help assistant covers Section I placements, the duty to admit, and how to challenge a refusal. You can describe exactly what the school or council has told you and get specific guidance on whether it is lawful and what to put in writing next.
Sources and further reading
Legislation
- Children and Families Act 2014, section 39 (parental request for a school and the three refusal grounds)
- Children and Families Act 2014, section 42 (duty to secure the provision in the plan)
- Children and Families Act 2014, section 43 (duty to admit a named school)
- Children and Families Act 2014, section 55 (mediation, and the placement-only exception)
- Education Act 1996, section 19 (interim education when a child cannot attend school)
- Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014, regulation 13 (draft-plan representation period)
Official guidance and statistics
- SEND Code of Practice 0 to 25 (statutory guidance, including consultation at paragraph 9.83)
- Tribunal Statistics Quarterly, July to September 2025 (2024/25 SEND appeal volumes and the 99% in-favour figure)
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