Greenwich is experiencing a significant increase in requests for special education needs assessments, placing strain on council resources and impacting service timeliness for children and families awaiting Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP). The impact on timeliness has been discussed at length at previous scrutiny panels.
The issue was brought to the forefront during the Children and Young People Scrutiny Panel meeting on 9 July 2025, where a performance monitoring report for Quarter 4 of 2024-2025 highlighted the challenges posed by the rising demand. According to the report, the service has seen a 17% increase in requests for assessments and a 19% increase in the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) cohort.
This surge in demand is placing considerable pressure on the council's ability to conduct assessments within the statutory 20-week timeframe. The report indicated that only 33% of new plans issued in the last quarter were completed within this period. This is despite efforts to improve timeliness, with performance in previous quarters ranging from 56% to 70%.
The increasing demand for EHCP assessments was scheduled to be discussed again at the September 17, 2025, meeting of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Panel, according to the Work Programme Schedule 2025-2026.
