SEND tribunal appeals
What happens after I send my appeal to the Tribunal?
Your appeal will usually be registered within 10 working days of receipt, and you will be informed of the date of the final hearing. All SEN appeals will now have a 12- week timetable (instead of the previous 20-week timetable). Some appeals may be listed on a slightly different timetable depending on the availability of Judges and Panel members.
When your appeal is registered the Tribunal will issue:
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Case directions – these set dates by which you must take action. Please keep a note of these important deadlines as you can be barred from the hearing for failing to comply.
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A Case Review form – this form helps to assist the tribunal with case management. Its purpose is to help the Tribunal manage cases as effectively as possible, by getting an update on the case and to see if there has been any progress on agreeing issues that were in dispute, ahead of the hearing. You will also use this form to inform the Tribunal and LA about who is attending the hearing (including details of your witnesses). You will be given a date by which you must submit your completed form.
When considering who may make a ‘good’ witness, take a look at our Youtube video on witnesses:
The Local Authority will be sent a copy of the appeal when it has been registered, they must respond within 30 days of their appeal notice being sent, sending a copy of their response and any other documents to yourself as well as the Tribunal.
The LA has the option to:
- Oppose your appeal.
- Apply to strike out your appeal and ask that it is brought to an end if they feel it is a case that the Tribunal cannot consider.
- Not oppose your appeal - for example this could be that they agree to amend the EHC Plan. If you are satisfied with the outcome, you can withdraw the appeal or ask the Tribunal to order the local authority to change the EHC plan in the way you have agreed, by making a consent order.
If you are appealing the contents of your child’s EHC plan, the local authority will also enclose a ‘working document’ with their response to the appeal. The working document is an important part of a contents appeal and is a Word version of the EHC plan which can be amended by both parties in the run up to the hearing. For more information on the working document, please take a look at our Youtube video: