Do you have questions about your child’s annual review?

2 mins read

Monday 2 November 2026

If your child or young person has an education, health and care (EHC) plan, their local authority must review it at least once a year. This formal process is known as an annual review, and it must follow specific legal requirements.

Parent carers often tell us that their child’s EHC plan is out of date, or that the school or college named in the plan is no longer meeting their needs. Others want advice so they can feel informed and prepared for the next annual review meeting.

We can also support families to understand the key discussions and decisions that form part of the annual review process, particularly when their child or young person is going through a phased transfer as part of the EHC process.

Our annual reviews Q&A gives parent carers in England the opportunity to ask questions and receive clear, tailored advice from our education helpline advisers.

How the Q&A works

  1. Submit your question using our short online form.
  2. Receive a personalised response from one of our education advisers.

After the Q&A closes, we will publish a news story sharing advice on some of the most common themes raised.

Who can take part?

The Q&A is open to parent carers in England whose child or young person has an EHC plan.

As we are a small team, we can accept a maximum of 30 questions. We recommend submitting your question as soon as possible.

Our online advice updated

We’ve recently updated our online advice page on annual reviews. Visit to find out:

  • What is an annual review?
  • How to prepare for the meeting.
  • What happens at the meeting?
  • How to make sure my views and my child’s views are considered during the phased transfer process.
  • What to do if you are unhappy with the outcome.

Support outside England

If you live in Scotland, Northern Ireland or Wales, our teams can still help. We have UK-wide education advice on our site. Visit our nations webpages to find support where you live, or submit a helpline enquiry and a member of our team will respond.