Skip to content
SEND Parents Help
How-to Guides

Write an EHCP Request Letter With AI Help

5 min read Last reviewed 10 June 2026

Part 5 of the AI for SEND Paperwork series

Ai HelpEHCPNeeds AssessmentLetters
A laptop and an open notebook on a kitchen worktop, ready to draft a letter requesting an assessment. AI-generated illustration.
On this page

You’ve watched your child struggle through the meetings, the promises, and the “let’s see how this term goes”. When waiting stops feeling like a plan, you can ask the council for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) assessment yourself. The legal test is lower than most parents and carers fear, and the free SEND Parents Help assistant can turn your notes and school reports into a letter that quotes the right law.

Start with this prompt

Open the assistant, paste this in, and fill in the brackets. It sets up the whole letter and names the legal test a decision maker looks for.

Your request letter starter prompt 
I want to request an EHC needs assessment for my child from our local authority in England. My child is [age] and their main difficulties are [describe the difficulties, e.g. speech and language, sensory overload, anxiety about school]. The school has tried [what support the school has put in place and how long for], but [why it isn’t enough]. I have the following evidence: [list reports, plans, or your own notes, and paste any key extracts]. Please draft a formal letter to the council’s SEN team requesting an EHC needs assessment. The letter should cite the legal test in section 36 of the Children and Families Act 2014, explaining that my child may have special educational needs and may need provision through an EHC plan. Keep it firm, polite, and specific, and list the evidence I’m enclosing.

One tap opens the assistant with this prompt ready. Edit the parts in [square brackets] once you are there. Prefer to do it by hand? Copy it and paste it in yourself.

Open the assistant with this prompt

The assistant asks a clarifying question or two before it drafts, so a rough start is fine. New to ChatGPT? Our two-minute setup guide gets you a free account. If your evidence is on paper or in PDFs, our free Doc Tools page pulls the text out in your browser, with nothing uploaded, ready to paste in.

The things that make a strong request

There’s no official form you have to use. IPSEA confirms no particular form, format, or method is required in law, so a letter or email to the SEN team counts. What it says matters more than how you send it:

  • Name the legal test and use its words. A request that quotes section 36, says your child “may have” SEN and provision “may be necessary”, is much harder to brush aside than a general plea for help.
  • Show why current SEN Support isn’t enough. The council needs to see why your child may need more than the school can provide on its own, not just that they’re struggling.
  • Point to specific evidence. School reports, SEN Support plans, SENCO meeting notes, and reports from a speech therapist, paediatrician, or educational psychologist. Your own observations count: “a 30-minute meltdown after school three times a week” carries more weight than “he gets upset”.
  • Keep a dated copy. A written letter is your record if the council later misses its deadline or refuses on grounds the law doesn’t allow.

A few key facts

  • The legal test is in section 36 of the Children and Families Act 2014: the local authority (LA) must assess if your child may have SEN and may need support through an EHCP.
  • You don’t need a diagnosis to ask. The definition of SEN in section 20 of the Children and Families Act 2014 is about difficulties and needs, not labels. You also don’t need a set time on SEN Support or the school’s permission.
  • A written request from a parent or carer is valid on its own, and young people aged 16 to 25 can request an assessment themselves.
  • If the LA agrees to assess, the whole process runs to a maximum of 20 weeks from your request to a final EHCP, if the council decides to issue one.
Important

The local authority has 6 weeks from receiving your request to tell you whether it will carry out an EHC needs assessment. If it says no, it must give written reasons, and you can appeal to the SEND Tribunal. Our guide on what to expect when you request an assessment covers the timeline in more detail.

Check it yourself before you send

AI is a brilliant drafting partner, but you’re the editor and you sign the letter. Before it goes anywhere:

  • Read every answer back as yourself. Every fact must be true: dates, ages, and what the school has tried.
  • Check the legal reference cites section 36 and uses “may have” and “may be necessary” language, and that nothing is overstated.
  • Send it to your council’s SEN team by email or post, keep a dated copy, and make sure every enclosure you list is actually attached.

If you’re not sure an EHCP is the right route, read what an EHCP is and whether your child needs one first, and check what the school should already be providing under SEN Support.

Getting help

IPSEA offers free, legally based advice on EHC needs assessments, including template letters and a helpline. If your request is refused, their guidance on next steps is excellent.

Your local SENDIASS (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Information, Advice and Support Service) is a free, council-funded but impartial service. An adviser can read your draft letter before you send it.

Contact, the charity for families with disabled children, runs a helpline and publishes plain-English guides on the EHCP process.

And the assistant itself covers the whole EHCP process in depth. If the council replies with a refusal, you can paste the refusal letter in and ask for help with your next move.

Sources and further reading

Legislation and official guidance