The 15-day EHCP response window explained
What the 15-day window after a draft EHCP is served means, what you can request during it, and what happens if you miss it.
When a council serves a draft EHCP, the law gives you at least 15 days to respond. The window runs from the date the draft was sent (check the covering letter).
What you can do in the window
- Make representations — written comments asking for changes to any section of the plan.
- Require a meeting — you can ask to meet a local authority officer to discuss the plan. This is a right, not a favour.
- Name your preferred school — the draft has no Section I. Tell them which school you want; the final plan must name it if they cannot show it's unsuitable or inefficient.
- Add evidence — recent reports, letters from professionals, your own account of your child's needs.
What happens after
The council must respond to your representations and, if it doesn't change the plan as you asked, explain why. It should then issue the final plan — normally within eight weeks of the representation window. The 20-week clock from your original assessment request should still hold.
If you miss the window
Send your comments anyway, as soon as possible. Councils can often still consider late comments before finalising, and the final plan can be appealed to the SEND Tribunal regardless. But don't rely on that — the 15-day window is your strongest position.
Not sure what to say? The checker finds the weak points in your draft and the paid package turns them into a professional letter.