Do I need to already have an EHCP to use this service?

No. We help with letters at every stage, whether you are raising an initial concern about unmet SEN needs, requesting an EHCP assessment for the first time, or challenging a decision about existing provision.

Can you help if the school or local authority has already refused a request?

Yes. We help parents write correspondence that is clear, structured, and grounded in the relevant legal framework, including letters responding to refusals and preparing for formal escalation or SEND Tribunal.

What if I have not written anything yet?

That is fine. You can explain the situation and we will draft the opening for you based on what you tell us. You do not need to have started before making contact.

How is this different from using a template?

Templates cannot account for the specific circumstances of your child, the history of your correspondence with the school, or the tone that will be most effective in your particular situation. Every letter we write is individual.

Help Writing to a School About SEND and EHCP

Professional letter writing support for SEND support plans, EHCP requests, provision disputes, and formal escalation

Writing to a school about your child's SEND support or Education, Health and Care Plan is one of the most important things a parent can do, and one of the hardest to get right. You know what your child needs. Getting a school or local authority to understand, acknowledge, and act on that is a different challenge entirely, and how the letter is written plays a significant role in how it is received.

LetterLab helps parents and carers write formal letters to schools about SEND support, EHCP requests, provision disputes, and escalation. Every letter is written individually, without templates, with the reader, the decision, and the required response in mind.

Common situations we help with include: requesting that a school follows an existing SEND support plan, asking for an Education, Health and Care needs assessment under Section 36 of the Children and Families Act 2014, chasing a response where letters or emails have been ignored, challenging a decision that SEN support is no longer needed, responding to a refusal to assess, commenting on draft EHCP wording, raising concerns about provision not being delivered under Section F of the EHC Plan, and escalating concerns formally where informal communication has repeatedly failed.

When Writing to a School Feels Like a Battle

Parents often come to us after sending multiple emails or letters without getting a clear response. Others are worried about saying the wrong thing, sounding difficult, or damaging the relationship with the school. Some have been told informally that their child does not meet the threshold for an EHCP, or that the school is doing everything it can, and do not know how to respond in writing without making things worse.

These situations are emotionally draining, particularly when you are already advocating for a child with additional needs while managing the day-to-day impact of inadequate support. The communication problem is almost always separate from the strength of your case. A valid concern can be easy to delay or dismiss when it is not presented clearly. That is what we address.

What Parents Are Entitled to Ask For

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, any parent can request an Education, Health and Care needs assessment regardless of whether the school supports the request. The local authority must respond within six weeks. If the request is refused, parents have the right to appeal to the SEND Tribunal.

Schools are required under the SEND Code of Practice 2015 to follow a graduated approach to SEN support through the Assess, Plan, Do, Review cycle. If a school is not following this cycle, is not involving parents in reviews, or is failing to implement provision already agreed, those are legitimate concerns that can and should be raised formally.

Where a child has an EHCP, Section F sets out the provision that must be delivered. That provision is legally binding. If it is not being delivered, a parent has grounds to write formally to the school and, if necessary, to the local authority. Clear, structured correspondence that references the relevant framework is significantly harder to deflect than a general expression of concern.

Why Wording Makes a Difference

Schools and local authorities receive a high volume of correspondence. Decisions are often made quickly, by people working across many cases at once. The opening of a letter signals whether the issue is clear, proportionate, and grounded in specific concerns, or whether it can be acknowledged and set aside.

When a letter over-explains the background, leads with frustration, apologises unnecessarily, or buries the actual request too far down the page, important points can be missed. This does not reflect the seriousness of the issue. It reflects how the issue is being presented, and presentation is something that can be corrected.

Clear, measured language helps schools and local authorities understand what you are asking for, why it matters, and what response you expect. It also creates a paper trail that is more difficult to ignore if the matter needs to be escalated.

Where a child has an EHCP, Section F sets out the provision that must be delivered. That provision is legally binding. If it is not being delivered, a parent has grounds to write formally to the school and, if necessary, to the local authority. Clear, structured correspondence that references the relevant framework is significantly harder to deflect than a general expression of concern.

Your child's needs do not have to be better understood. They have to be better presented.

Most parents who come to us are not asking for anything unreasonable. They are asking for what their child is legally entitled to. The problem is rarely the strength of the case. It is that the correspondence does not reflect that strength clearly enough for the person reading it to act on it without hesitation.

A school or local authority receiving a letter that is structured, specific, and grounded in the right legal framework has less room to delay, deflect, or give a partial response. That is what clear wording achieves. Not a better argument. A clearer one.

What the Difference Looks Like

The underlying situation is the same. The second letter is specific, references the SEN register and the SENCO, includes a clear request with a timeframe, and creates a documented record. It is harder to delay and easier to act on.

Result: The request was accepted, the council moved forward with an EHCP assessment, and the case progressed after previously being overlooked.

Before

"I keep telling the school that my son is not getting the support he needs but they just say they are doing their best. I don't know what else to say and I'm getting really frustrated."

After

"I am writing to raise a formal concern regarding the SEN support currently in place for [child's name], who is on the school's SEN register. Despite previous correspondence on [date], the support outlined in his SEN support plan has not been consistently implemented. I am requesting a meeting with the SENCO within ten school days to review the current plan and agree specific, measurable actions. Please confirm receipt of this letter and proposed dates by return."

What We Help With

We help parents and carers write clear, appropriate letters to schools and local authorities across the full range of SEND and EHCP correspondence, including:

Letters requesting an EHCP needs assessment for the first time
Letters where an EHCP assessment has been refused and the decision needs to be challenged
Responses to a local authority's refusal to assess, including preparation for SEND Tribunal
Comments on draft EHCPs where wording is vague, incomplete, or does not accurately reflect the child's needs
Correspondence about Section F provision not being delivered
Follow-up letters after meetings where agreed actions have not been taken
Letters escalating concerns to the SENCO, headteacher, or local authority
Annual review correspondence where existing provision needs to be updated or challenged
Formal complaints about SEND provision at school or local authority level
Letters requesting that a school follows an existing SEN support plan

How We Work

We Start With The Opening

We adjust wording to improve clarity, structure, and focus while keeping your meaning and concerns intact. The aim is not to soften the issue. It is to present it in a way that is more likely to be read, understood, and acted on.

You Receive Wording That Is Ready to Send

You receive a revised opening you can use immediately. If you choose to continue, we can help complete the full letter. If not, you still leave with clearer wording and a stronger starting point. There is no obligation to continue beyond the opening review.

Why Parents Use LetterLab

LetterLab is run by James Pite, a UK-based letter writer with experience inside organisations like the DWP and financial services, where decisions are made based on how information is presented and assessed. What started as helping his own family challenge decisions and navigate formal processes has led to real outcomes for the parents and carers LetterLab supports, including EHCP assessments secured after initial refusals, provision disputes resolved, and formal complaints upheld after earlier correspondence was ignored.

Every letter is handled individually. No templates are used at any level. The focus is always on clarity, restraint, and credibility, particularly where children's needs and outcomes are involved.

Further Guidance For Parents

If you want to understand the process before making contact, or need guidance on a specific aspect of SEND or EHCP correspondence, the following articles cover the situations parents ask about most.

Common Questions

Start With a Free Review

We can fix the opening of your letter to a school or local authority with a free professional review. If you have not written anything yet, you can explain the situation and we will draft the opening for you.

If you choose to continue, we can help complete the full letter. If not, you still leave with clearer wording and a stronger starting point.

Free reviews are subject to availability.

You are not asking for too much

You just need help putting it into words

Fix My Letter