What Happens During a SEND Review Meeting?

A SEND review meeting can feel worrying if you are not sure what to expect.

Parents may wonder whether the school is going to reduce support, whether they need to bring evidence, whether the meeting is formal, or whether they are allowed to disagree. Teachers may also feel pressure because they need to talk honestly about a pupil’s needs, progress and support without making families feel blamed or dismissed.

In reality, a good SEND review meeting should be a structured conversation about what is working, what is not working, and what needs to happen next.

The meeting should not simply be a box-ticking exercise. It should look at the child or young person as a whole: their learning, wellbeing, communication, independence, relationships, attendance, sensory needs, behaviour, confidence, progress and support.

This guide explains what usually happens during a SEND review meeting, how parents can prepare, what schools may discuss, and what happens afterwards.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. SEND systems and terminology vary across the UK. EHCP information in this article mainly applies to England.

What is a SEND review meeting?

A SEND review meeting is a meeting to look at a child or young person’s special educational needs and the support they receive.

The exact format depends on the situation. Some SEND review meetings are informal school-based reviews for pupils receiving SEN Support. Others are formal annual review meetings for pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan, often called an EHCP or EHC plan.

The basic purpose is usually the same:

to look at the child’s current needs;
to review progress since the last meeting;
to check whether support is working;
to listen to parents, carers and the child or young person;
to agree next steps;
to decide whether support needs to change.

A review meeting may happen because it is part of the school’s normal SEND review cycle, because parents have asked for a meeting, because staff are concerned, or because an EHCP annual review is due.

The meeting should be about understanding needs, not blaming anyone. If a child is struggling, the question should not be “Why are they not trying harder?” It should be “What is getting in the way, and what support would help?”

SEN Support review or EHCP annual review: what is the difference?

It is important to understand what type of SEND review meeting you are attending.

Many children with additional needs receive support through SEN Support. This means the school has identified special educational needs and is providing extra help through its own SEND processes. This support is usually reviewed regularly by the school, often with parents and sometimes with the child.

An EHCP annual review is different. An EHCP is a legal document for children and young people who need more support than is normally available through SEN Support. The local authority must review an EHC plan at least once a year. This formal review looks at the needs, outcomes and provision in the plan and whether anything should change.

In simple terms:

SEN Support review: a school-level review of support, progress and next steps.
EHCP annual review: a statutory review of a legal plan involving the school, parents, child or young person, professionals and the local authority process.

Both types of meeting matter. A SEN Support review can lead to better classroom adjustments, new interventions, outside agency referrals or discussion about whether an EHC needs assessment may be appropriate. An EHCP review can lead to the plan being maintained, amended or, in some cases, ceased by the local authority.

If you are unsure which type of meeting you have been invited to, ask the school before the meeting. It is reasonable to ask: “Is this a SEN Support review or an EHCP annual review?”

You may also find these AllSchools guides useful: SEN Support vs EHCP: What Is the Difference? and The Ultimate Guide to SEN Support and EHCPs for Parents.

Who usually attends a SEND review meeting?

The people at the meeting depend on the child’s needs and the type of review.

A school-based SEN Support review may include:

parents or carers;
the class teacher or form tutor;
the SENCO;
a teaching assistant or support staff member;
a year leader, pastoral lead or senior leader;
the child or young person, where appropriate.

An EHCP annual review may also involve:

local authority SEND staff;
educational psychologist;
speech and language therapist;
occupational therapist;
physiotherapist;
CAMHS or mental health professional;
social care professional;
specialist teacher or advisory teacher;
college, post-16 or transition staff for older pupils.

Not everyone invited will always attend. Sometimes professionals provide written advice instead. Parents can ask who has been invited and whether reports will be shared before the meeting.

The child or young person’s views should also be included. This does not always mean they must sit through the whole meeting. Some children may attend part of the meeting, record a short statement, complete a pupil voice form, draw something, talk to a trusted adult beforehand, or share their views in another way.

The meeting should be built around the child’s needs and comfort, not around adult convenience.

What should happen before the meeting?

A useful SEND review meeting starts before everyone sits down together.

Before the meeting, the school or meeting organiser should usually gather information about the child’s progress, needs and support. For an EHCP annual review, written advice and information should be gathered and shared with the people involved before the meeting so everyone can prepare.

Parents may be asked to provide their views. This is not just a formality. Parent views can be very important because families see things the school may not see, including anxiety before school, exhaustion after school, homework difficulties, sleep problems, friendship worries, sensory overload or behaviour that is held in all day and released at home.

Before the meeting, parents may want to think about:

What is going well?
What is still difficult?
Has anything changed at home or school?
Is the current support actually happening?
Is the support helping?
Are there new concerns?
What does the child say about school?
Are there examples of work, behaviour, anxiety or progress to bring?
What outcome would feel realistic and helpful after the meeting?

Schools should also prepare carefully. A review meeting is much stronger when staff bring specific evidence rather than vague comments.

Useful school evidence may include:

progress data;
examples of work;
attendance information;
behaviour records, if relevant;
intervention notes;
teacher observations;
assessment results;
pupil voice;
records of support provided;
professional reports;
notes on what strategies have and have not worked.

If you are a parent and you have not received any information before an EHCP annual review, ask the school or local authority what should have been shared and when.

What is usually discussed during the meeting?

A SEND review meeting usually follows a broad structure, even if schools use different forms or templates.

The meeting may cover:

the child’s strengths and interests;
parent and child views;
progress since the last review;
current needs;
support currently in place;
whether support is working;
any new concerns;
attendance, behaviour or wellbeing issues;
friendships and social communication;
independence and confidence;
reasonable adjustments;
targets or outcomes;
next steps and responsibilities.

For an EHCP annual review, the meeting should look at whether the EHC plan still accurately describes the child’s needs, provision and outcomes. It should consider whether the outcomes remain appropriate and whether the provision is specific enough and still suitable.

The meeting should not only focus on academic progress. A child may be meeting academic targets but struggling badly with anxiety, sensory overload, attendance, emotional regulation or social communication. Those issues matter too.

For example, a review may discuss:

whether the child is coping in the classroom;
whether they can access lessons independently;
whether they need more visual support;
whether writing, reading or working memory is affecting learning;
whether they avoid school or certain lessons;
whether support is helping or creating dependency;
whether breaktimes or lunchtimes are difficult;
whether staff need extra training or advice;
whether external professional input is needed.

The best meetings are honest but respectful. They recognise difficulties without defining the child only by those difficulties.

How are targets, outcomes and support reviewed?

Many SEND review meetings look at targets or outcomes.

For SEN Support, the school may review short-term targets. These might relate to reading, writing, communication, emotional regulation, social skills, attention, independence or classroom access.

For an EHCP, the meeting should look at the outcomes written in the plan. Outcomes are usually broader than short-term targets. They describe what the child or young person is working towards over time.

A useful review should ask:

Has the child made progress towards this target or outcome?
What evidence shows progress?
Was the support delivered as planned?
Did the support make a difference?
Is the target still appropriate?
Does the child need a new target?
Does the support need to change?
Are the targets too vague, too easy or unrealistic?

Targets should be meaningful. A target such as “improve writing” is not very helpful on its own. A better target explains what the child is working on, how progress will be supported, and how people will know whether it has improved.

Support should also be clear. Parents often become frustrated when a plan says things like “access to support” or “regular help” without explaining what that means. Good support is specific enough for everyone to understand what should happen.

For example:

Who is providing the support?
How often will it happen?
How long will each session last?
Is it one-to-one or small group?
What strategy or intervention will be used?
How will progress be reviewed?

If support is vague, the review meeting is a good place to ask for clarity.

What questions can parents ask?

Parents are allowed to ask questions. You do not need to know all the SEND language before you can take part.

Useful questions include:

What progress has my child made since the last review?
What evidence shows this progress?
What support is currently in place?
How often is the support happening?
Who delivers the support?
What is working well?
What is not working?
What does my child find most difficult during the school day?
Are there any concerns about attendance, anxiety or friendships?
Does my child need any new assessments or professional advice?
Are the current targets still right?
What will change after this meeting?
Who is responsible for each next step?
When will we review progress again?

If your child has an EHCP, you can also ask:

Does the plan still accurately describe my child’s needs?
Is the provision in the plan specific enough?
Is all the provision in the plan being delivered?
Do any sections of the plan need updating?
Are the outcomes still appropriate?
Will the school recommend changes to the local authority?
When will the review paperwork be sent to the local authority?

If you feel nervous, write your questions down before the meeting. It is also reasonable to bring someone with you for support, such as another parent, friend, advocate or SENDIASS adviser, depending on the school’s arrangements.

You may also find this guide useful: How to Talk to Your Child’s Teacher When You’re Worried.

What if parents and school disagree?

Disagreement can happen.

Parents may feel their child needs more support than the school is providing. The school may feel progress is better than parents think. A child may appear calm in school but distressed at home. Staff may feel a strategy is working, while parents see little difference outside school.

These situations can be difficult, but they are not unusual.

If you disagree, try to keep the discussion focused on evidence and next steps. Useful phrases include:

“Can we look at the evidence for that?”
“Can you explain how often this support is happening?”
“At home we are seeing something different. How can we include that in the review?”
“What would need to happen for support to increase?”
“Can my disagreement be recorded in the meeting notes?”
“What are the next steps if we do not agree?”

For an EHCP annual review, parents can ask for their views to be included in the review paperwork. If the local authority later makes a decision you disagree with, such as refusing to amend the plan or deciding to cease the plan, there may be formal routes to challenge that decision.

For SEN Support, if you feel concerns are not being taken seriously, you can ask for another meeting with the SENCO, speak to a senior leader, use the school complaints process, contact SENDIASS or ask about whether an EHC needs assessment may be appropriate.

Try to keep written records of key conversations, decisions and actions. This can help avoid confusion later.

What happens after the meeting?

After a SEND review meeting, there should be a clear record of what was discussed and what will happen next.

For a school-based SEN Support review, the school may update the child’s support plan, individual education plan, pupil passport, one-page profile or SEND records. Parents should know what support has been agreed, who is responsible and when progress will be reviewed again.

For an EHCP annual review, the meeting organiser should prepare a report. The local authority then considers the review information and decides what should happen to the EHC plan.

After an EHCP annual review, the local authority may decide to:

keep the EHC plan as it is;
amend the EHC plan;
cease the EHC plan.

If the plan is amended, parents should have the opportunity to comment on proposed changes. If the local authority makes a decision parents disagree with, they should be told about their rights and next steps.

For any SEND review, the most important question after the meeting is:

What will actually change for the child?

If the answer is unclear, ask for clarification. A meeting that produces no clear actions is unlikely to help.

How parents can prepare well

Preparation does not need to be complicated.

Before the meeting, parents may want to:

read the current support plan or EHCP;
write down what is going well;
write down the main concerns;
ask the child for their views in a comfortable way;
collect examples of work, emails, reports or incidents;
note any changes in sleep, anxiety, behaviour or attendance;
check whether agreed support is actually happening;
write down questions;
think about what outcome they want from the meeting;
ask for reports in advance if they have not received them.

Try to be specific. Instead of saying “school is not working”, give examples:

“Homework takes two hours and ends in tears.”
“He says he has no one to sit with at lunch.”
“She is exhausted after school and cannot speak for an hour.”
“We were told reading support would happen three times a week, but we do not know if it is happening.”
“The current target is too broad, so we cannot tell whether progress is being made.”

Specific examples help the school understand the real issue.

If the meeting is about anxiety, avoidance or emotional distress, this guide may help: School Anxiety and School Avoidance: A Parent’s Guide.

How schools can make SEND review meetings better

A good SEND review meeting should feel organised, respectful and purposeful.

Schools can improve meetings by:

sharing information in advance;
making the purpose of the meeting clear;
inviting the right people;
including the child or young person’s views;
starting with strengths, not only concerns;
using plain English rather than jargon;
being honest about what support is actually happening;
listening carefully to parent concerns;
recording disagreement fairly;
agreeing clear actions, names and dates;
following up after the meeting.

Schools should avoid making parents feel as though the meeting is already decided before they arrive. Review meetings should involve families meaningfully.

For teachers and school staff, the best review meetings are evidence-informed but human. Data matters, but so do pupil voice, family experience and daily classroom reality.

A SEND review meeting checklist

Here is a simple checklist for parents before, during and after the meeting.

Before the meeting

Check whether it is a SEN Support review or EHCP annual review.
Ask who will attend.
Ask for reports or evidence in advance.
Read the current plan or support arrangements.
Write down your main concerns.
Ask your child for their views.
Prepare questions.
Bring any useful examples or documents.

During the meeting

Ask what progress has been made.
Ask what evidence supports this.
Check whether agreed support is happening.
Discuss what is and is not working.
Ask for clear actions.
Ask who is responsible for each action.
Ask when progress will be reviewed.
Ask for disagreement to be recorded if needed.

After the meeting

Read the meeting notes or review report.
Check that your views are recorded accurately.
Check that actions are clear.
Ask for corrections if something important is missing.
Keep copies of emails and documents.
Follow up if agreed support does not happen.

The meeting should lead to clarity. If you leave unsure what has been agreed, ask for a written summary.

FAQ: SEND review meetings

Is a SEND review meeting the same as an EHCP annual review?

Not always. A SEND review meeting can be a school-level review of SEN Support, or it can be a formal EHCP annual review. An EHCP annual review is a statutory process linked to a legal plan. If you are not sure which meeting you are attending, ask the school.

How often should SEND support be reviewed?

SEN Support should be reviewed regularly by the school, usually as part of an assess, plan, do, review cycle. EHCPs must be reviewed at least once every 12 months, although reviews may happen more often in some circumstances.

Do parents have to attend a SEND review meeting?

Parents should be involved and their views should be considered. If you cannot attend the proposed time, ask whether the meeting can be rearranged or whether you can provide written views. For an EHCP annual review, parent and child or young person views are an important part of the process.

Can my child attend the review meeting?

Yes, where appropriate. Some children attend all or part of the meeting. Others share their views beforehand through a form, drawing, conversation, video or trusted adult. The approach should suit the child’s age, needs and comfort.

What should I bring to a SEND review meeting?

You can bring notes, questions, examples of work, professional reports, emails, behaviour or anxiety records, homework examples, attendance information or anything else that helps explain your child’s needs and progress.

What if I disagree with what the school says?

You can explain your view calmly and ask for your disagreement to be recorded. Focus on evidence and examples. If the meeting relates to an EHCP, you may have formal rights if you later disagree with the local authority’s decision. If it is SEN Support, you can ask for further discussion, involve senior staff or seek advice from SENDIASS.

Can support be increased after a review meeting?

Yes, support can be changed if the review shows that current support is not enough or is not working. For SEN Support, the school may adjust strategies or interventions. For an EHCP, changes to the plan may need to be considered by the local authority.

Can support be reduced after a SEND review?

Support may be changed if evidence shows the child’s needs have changed, but this should be considered carefully. Parents should ask what evidence supports the change and how the child will continue to access learning safely and effectively.

What happens after an EHCP annual review?

After the meeting, a report should be prepared and sent to the local authority. The local authority then decides whether to keep the plan as it is, amend it, or cease it. Parents should be informed of the decision and next steps.

What if agreed support does not happen after the meeting?

Keep a written record and contact the school to ask when the support will start. If the support is in an EHCP and is not being delivered, this is more serious because the plan is legally enforceable. You may need to contact the local authority or seek specialist advice.

Can I ask for an early SEND review?

Yes, you can ask the school for a review if you have concerns. For an EHCP, you can ask for an early review if needs have changed or the plan is no longer suitable, although the local authority or school process may vary.

Who can help me prepare for a SEND review meeting?

You can ask the school SENCO, your local SENDIASS service, a parent support organisation, an advocate, or a specialist adviser. If the issue is complex or legal, you may want specialist SEND legal advice.