The words “we’ll have to go to tribunal” can feel like the end of the road. It sounds formal, legal, and frightening. Most parents and carers have never been inside a courtroom, and the idea of challenging a local authority feels overwhelming.
But it isn’t a courtroom: its official name is the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability), and you’ll still hear plenty of parents and professionals call it by its old name, SENDIST. An independent panel, a judge and up to two specialist members, hears your appeal against the local authority, free and without a solicitor, and decides what your child is legally entitled to. You have 2 months from the LA’s decision to register your appeal. Most importantly, parents win the vast majority of appeals.
Here’s what the process actually looks like, from start to finish.
Why parents appeal
You can appeal to the SEND Tribunal if the Local Authority (LA):
- Refuses to carry out an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment
- Refuses to issue an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) after an assessment
- Issues an EHCP you disagree with (sections B, F, or I)
- Refuses to amend the EHCP after an annual review
- Decides to cease the EHCP
You can also bring a disability discrimination claim against a school. It’s a different track: you’ll use form SEND4A (or SEND4B if your child is old enough to claim for themselves), the deadline is 6 months from the discriminatory act rather than 2 months from an LA decision, and there’s no mediation certificate to get first. The tribunal handles both types of case.
In 2024-25, when SEND Tribunal appeals reached a hearing, parents won in 99% of decided cases, according to the tribunal statistics quarterly. Most appeals do reach a decision - about seven in ten recorded outcomes in 2024/25 - while roughly three in ten end beforehand because the Local Authority concedes or the case is withdrawn. That success rate isn’t a misprint. The vast majority of appeals are decided in the parent’s favour, either at the hearing or because the LA concedes before it gets there.
The appeal process
Here’s what happens from the moment you decide to appeal:
- MediationBefore you can register an appeal, you must contact a mediation service (not required if your appeal is only about which school is named in Section I). You don’t have to mediate, but you must get a mediation certificate.
- Register your appealComplete the SEND35 form (SEND35A if you’re appealing a refusal to assess) and send it to the tribunal with your mediation certificate.
- LA responseThe LA has 30 working days to file their response and evidence.
- Case managementThe tribunal may issue directions (instructions) about evidence, deadlines, and whether expert reports are needed.
- Working documentBoth sides agree a working document that sets out what’s agreed and what’s in dispute.
- HearingThe tribunal panel hears both sides and asks questions. Usually lasts half a day to a full day.
- DecisionThe tribunal sends its decision in writing.
Your own case will move at its own pace, since LAs and tribunal caseloads vary, but every appeal passes through those same seven stages.
Registering your appeal
You register using the SEND35 form (available from gov.uk). You’ll need:
- Your mediation certificate (or a certificate saying you contacted the service but chose not to mediate)
- The LA’s decision letter
- Your reasons for appealing
- Any evidence you want to submit
You have 2 months from the date of the Local Authority’s decision to register, as gov.uk’s appeal guidance confirms (or 1 month from a mediation certificate, whichever is later).
Mark this deadline on your calendar right away so you don’t miss it.
Don’t wait until the deadline is close. Register as soon as you’re ready. The sooner you register, the sooner the process moves forward. You can add evidence later.
Evidence bundles
Both sides submit evidence bundles. Your bundle might include:
- Professional reports (educational psychologist, speech and language therapist (SALT), occupational therapist (OT), paediatrician)
- School records showing your child’s progress (or lack of it)
- Letters from the school or LA
- Your own written evidence about your child’s needs
- Reports from any independent professionals you’ve instructed
The LA will submit their own bundle, including their assessment reports and any professional advice they relied on.
The tribunal doesn’t automatically favour the LA’s evidence over yours. If you’ve had your child privately assessed and the report supports your case, it can be powerful evidence.
The working document
Before the hearing, both sides work together on a working document. This is a table showing each section of the EHCP, what the parent wants, what the LA is offering, and whether the point is agreed or in dispute.
The working document narrows the issues. Often, by the time you get to the hearing, the LA has agreed to most of what you asked for. The hearing then focuses only on the remaining points of disagreement.
What the hearing is like
The hearing is less formal than you might expect:
- It’s usually held in an office or conference room, not a courtroom
- There’s a panel of a judge and up to two specialist members (usually an education professional and a disability specialist)
- You can bring someone to support you (SENDIASS, a friend, a McKenzie friend, or a solicitor)
- The panel will ask questions directly. It’s a conversation, not a cross-examination
- Your child doesn’t attend (unless they want to and are old enough)
- Most hearings last between 3 and 6 hours
The panel reads all the evidence before the hearing. They’re already familiar with your case. The tribunal sends its decision in writing within 10 working days of the hearing. The hearing itself is about exploring the areas of disagreement, hearing from witnesses, and allowing both sides to explain their position.
Costs
The SEND Tribunal itself is free. There’s no fee to register an appeal and no fee for the hearing. If you lose, you won’t be ordered to pay the LA’s costs (and they won’t be ordered to pay yours).
The main costs for parents are:
- Independent reports (if you instruct your own professionals, typically ranging from a few hundred to over a thousand pounds per report)
- Solicitor or advocate fees (if you choose to be legally represented)
- Time off work for the hearing
Many parents represent themselves successfully. You don’t need a solicitor to win at tribunal. The panel understands that parents aren’t lawyers, and SENDIASS can help you prepare your case. Your own knowledge of your child is often the most convincing evidence.
What the tribunal can decide
Once the panel reaches a decision about your child, it can:
- Order the LA to carry out an EHC needs assessment
- Order the LA to issue an EHCP
- Change the content of sections B, F, or I of the EHCP
- Name a specific school or placement
- Order the LA to maintain an EHCP it wanted to cease
- Make findings of disability discrimination
The tribunal’s decision is legally binding: the LA must comply for an EHCP order, and the school must comply for a discrimination finding. For a discrimination finding, that can mean an apology, staff training, or a policy change, but not compensation - the tribunal can’t order the school to pay you money. The tribunal decides what’s in the plan, not whether it’s actually delivered day to day; if a final plan’s provision isn’t being delivered, that’s a separate complaint to the LA, not a tribunal appeal.
After the decision
If you win an EHCP appeal, the LA must implement the tribunal’s order within a set deadline set by the SEND Regulations 2014, commonly 5 weeks to issue or amend a plan. The tribunal itself has no power to enforce its own decision, so if the LA doesn’t comply, you can:
- Write to the LA citing the order and the deadline it has missed
- Complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman if that doesn’t resolve it
- Seek judicial review in the High Court (rare, but available), particularly if the delay is urgent
A discrimination finding against a school works differently: if the school doesn’t comply, the route is a complaint to the Department for Education rather than the Ombudsman.
If you lose, you can request permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal, but only on a point of law.
If the discrimination angle is part of your case, our guide to disability discrimination at school covers what counts as discrimination, how the tribunal handles these claims alongside an EHCP appeal, and how to build your case.
Getting help
IPSEA provides free legal advice on SEND Tribunal appeals, including help with drafting grounds of appeal and preparing evidence.
Your local SENDIASS can attend the hearing with you, help you prepare your case, and explain the process step by step.
SOS!SEN offers telephone advice and can help parents prepare for tribunal.
The tribunal exists for you
The SEND Tribunal was created because the system doesn’t always get it right. Parents appeal because LAs make wrong decisions, and the statistics show that parents are right to challenge them.
It’s not adversarial. It’s not a battle. It’s a process designed to make sure your child gets what they’re legally entitled to. And the numbers show that when parents get to tribunal, the outcome is almost always in their favour.