How long does an EHC Plan last?

Your child could have an EHC Plan for the whole of their education, or just part of it. The reviews of your child’s plan may indicate that they will continue to make good progress with the help that their education provider can put in place from their own resources. In these cases, your child will no longer be considered to need statutory support and the local authority would cease to maintain their EHC Plan.

As long as a child or young person continues to access statutory special educational provision, the EHC Plan can last up to the age of 25.

After the age of 16, an EHC Plan could still apply in:

• Specialist schools or colleges;
• Mainstream further education and sixth form colleges;
• Training Providers;
• Apprenticeships;

If a young person decides to move into employment or on to university (higher education) an EHC Plan does not apply because this is not special educational provision, although there should still be support available.