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- Moving to Surrey if your child has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan
- Moving out of Surrey if your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan
If your child does not have an EHC plan
If your child has additional educational needs and/ or disabilities, but no Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan, please refer to information on mainstream school admissions web pages.
Moving to Surrey if your child has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan
When a child or young person moves to a new area in England, their old council must send their EHC plan to the new council. This should happen on the day they move or 15 working days after the old council is told about the move. In Surrey you need to notify one of our SEND teams.
- Tell the education setting that you are moving. If your child or can stay at the same setting for a while, let the school and the council know. If they can't stay, the setting can take them off their register
- Tell anyone else who helps your child that you are moving such as their doctor, therapist or social care worker
- Contact your current council's Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) team to tell them know you are moving. It is best to put this in writing as soon as you know your moving date. You must give them your new address so they can send the EHC plan to the new council. If you do not have a moving date yet, they will wait until the date is confirmed
- If you do not know who to contact, you can ask SEND Advice Surrey, who can give free, impartial advice. Find your local IAS service.
- Your old council should tell Surrey that you are moving and send us your child's EHC plan. You should still contact us to confirm you now live in Surrey.
- We will then ask you you to send documents of where you live (proof of residency). This could be:
- tenancy agreement signed by you and your landlord
- a letter from your solicitor showing the date of your house purchase completion date
- a utility bill (gas, electricity or water)
- a council tax bill
If you have any questions please get in touch through the contact centre.
The old council will send your child's EHC plan to us on the day you move, or within 15 working days after they are told you have moved.
When we receive your proof of your new address, we become responsible for making sure your child gets the right education.
We will then tell you that the EHC plan has been transferred to us.
Within six weeks from the date of transfer we will decide whether to:
- review the EHC plan
- hold a meeting to review the plan or
- carry out a re-assessment.
You will be given an EHC plan Coordination Officer who will be your main contact. They will talk to you about school or college choices and help you find a new place if your child needs one.
Your child may be able to stay at the education setting named in their EHC plan. This depends on your situation, so please talk to your EHC plan Coordination Officer about this.
When you move to Surrey, your old council will pass the assessment work to us.
You will need to send us proof of your new address so that we can carry on with the assessment.
Your old council will share with us all the assessment information they have already collected such as reports, advice and documents.
We will then finish the EHC needs assessment and decide if an EHC plan should be issued following the assessment.
When you move to a new area, it can take time to find the right school or college. If your child does not have an education setting to attend straightaway, we will provide alternative education until they do.
If your child needs a new school or college you can tell us which one you prefer. To help you choose, you can:
- look at the Directory of Surrey schools
- visit the school's websites to read their Special Educational Needs (SEN) Policy and SEN information report which explains how they support pupils with SEN.
- visit schools in the area.
We will consult with the nearest suitable setting as well as the school/college you prefer. Your EHC plan Coordination Officer will explain how this works and help you through the process.
You can find information about:
- Primary schools in Surrey for children with an EHC plan
- Secondary schools in Surrey for students with an EHC plan
It is important to consider how your child or young person would get to and from school or college. It may be that you are entitled to travel help.
Moving out of Surrey if your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan
If your child has an EHC plan and you are moving out of Surrey please tell your EHC plan Coordination Officer. You should also contact your new council to let them know you are moving. Once you live in the new area, the new council will be responsible for your child's EHC plan.
We will send the EHC plan and important documents to the new council within 15 days of being told about your move, or on the day you move, if we know ahead of time.
When you move to a new area, your child may have new health services. This can include therapies they get in school, like speech and language or occupational therapy.
If your child has medical or health needs that are supported in school through an Individual Health Care Plan (IHCP) the school is responsible for this. If you already have an IHCP from your child's previous education setting, you should give this to the new setting. This helps them understand your child's needs and know how to support them.
If you move to Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland or another country, we will decide if your child or young person's EHC plan should stop. We will look at each case separately. This will depend on things like whether the move is permanent or only for a short time.
You can look at the Government's guidance for more information about what happens to an EHC plan when you move outside England including:
- when an EHC plan might stop or continue to exist
- what happens if you return to England after being away