Briefings 03 September 2025

What legal rights and entitlements does a child with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) have?

Max Charman

4 min Read

Parents of children with SEND are often faced with myths, half-truths and misleading information. This can make an already complex system feel even more overwhelming, creating barriers to children receiving the support they are legally entitled to.

So, what rights does a child with SEND have, and what can be done when things go wrong? Legal assistant Max Charman sets out families' rights, and how they can respond to challenges, below.

Children’s legal rights and entitlements under SEND law

Every child with SEND is protected by law and has the following rights:

The right to protection from harm and to have their welfare promoted;
The right to effective suitable and full-time education, including when they are out of school, regardless of whether they remain on school roll;
The right to have all of their SEND identified early;
The right to a SEN Support Plan and associated provision worth up to £6,000 per year (in a mainstream state-funded school);
The right to reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 (for disabled pupils in any type of school);
The right to an education, health and care needs assessment (EHCNA) by their home local authority (subject to threshold test, which is low);
The right to an education, health and care plan (EHCP) which describes needs and the required provision and places a legal obligation on the LA to fund such provision, including the named school to be attended (if following EHCNA it is necessary to issue an EHCP);
The right, subject to conditions, to have the school their parents prefer for them named in an EHCP – although the child’s views as to what school they want to go to also carry weight, which generally increases with age
The right, where it is inappropriate for provision to be made in a school for them, to have a funded package of education otherwise than in a school (EOTIS) provided for in their EHCP;
The right to all of the provision specified in their EHCP and to have their EHCP reviewed at least annually;
The right to attend a mainstream school if this is what they and their parents want (save for where very limited disqualifiers apply);
The right to a social care assessment of their needs and support required at home or in the community – and subject to that assessment, to social care provision such as provision of carers or respite;
The right to freedom from discrimination arising from disability & other forms of discrimination;
The right to be heard and to have their wishes and feelings considered in all decisions concerning them;
The right, usually via their parents, to appeal decisions about their EHCP, a school admission refusal, or an exclusion decision;
The right to have access to their personal data and for data processed about them to be accurate; and
The right to have their ‘best interests’ as a primary consideration in decisions and actions concerning them.

When schools and local authorities fail to meet their duties

Whilst precisely what a child is entitled to will depend on their individual circumstances, it is all too common for schools and local authorities to fail to meet their obligations under the law, and all too frequently to appear entirely unaware of them.

When things go wrong, there are a number of options available to parents, including:

Challenging decisions of the local authority by appealing to the First-tier Tribunal, such as against a decision refusing to carry out an EHCNA, refusing to issue an EHCP, against the contents of an EHCP, refusal to amend an EHCP, refusal to reassess for an EHCP, or ceasing to maintain an EHCP;
Challenging local authority decisions that are forward-looking by commencing pre-action protocol for judicial review, and ultimately issuing proceedings for issues such failure to provide suitable full-time education, failure to secure the provision in an EHCP, or failure to comply with various statutory timeframes;
Challenging historic local authority decision by way of a formal complaint, seeking financial recompense such as for missed education, missed special educational provision, missed deadlines, and associated time, trouble and distress and out of pocket expenses. Escalating the complaint to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman where satisfactory resolution is not achieved, having exhausted the internal complaints process;
Challenging decisions of schools by a formal complaint;
Challenging decision of schools by way of a notification or complaint to regulators and inspectors such as the Department for Education, Ofsted, Education and Skills Funding Agency, Ofqual, Independent Schools Inspectorate, Charity Commission, and Teaching Regulation Agency;
Challenging discriminatory decisions of schools by bringing a claim under the Equality Act 2010 in the First-tier Tribunal;
Challenging non-compliance with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 by way of a data rectification request, complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office, or by issuing proceedings to enforce compliance and/or for compensation.

Conclusion

Children and young people with SEND have extensive rights under the law, but too often these are overlooked or misunderstood by schools and local authorities. Parents should not feel powerless in these situations; there are legal remedies available to challenge decisions and secure the support their child is entitled to.

About Max

Max Charman is a legal assistant in the education law team, specialising in supporting parents and carers to secure the education provision their children need to thrive

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If you would like to speak with a member of the team you can contact our education law solicitors on +44 (0)20 3826 7528 or complete our enquiry form.

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