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← Children in Care & SEND

Comparison

PEP vs EHCP — why your child may need both

A PEP and an EHCP are not the same thing, and one does not replace the other. Children in care can — and often should — have both. Here’s the difference, in plain language.

The short version

PEP

Describes the support being given.

A planning record within the care-planning process. Statutory guidance says it should be reviewed each school term. Pupil Premium Plus arrangements depend on eligibility and current guidance.

EHCP

Records special educational provision the LA must secure under section 42.

A statutory plan under the Children and Families Act 2014. If the support in Section F is not delivered, you have legal remedies (complaint, judicial review, Tribunal).

Why a child in care might need both

The PEP captures the bigger picture of a child’s education in care — attendance, attainment, PP+ spending, transitions. The EHCP captures the specific special educational, health and care provision they have a legal right to.

If your child has — or might have — special educational needs, the PEP on its own has a different purpose. A PEP is reviewed through the care-planning process; an EHCP has a separate statutory amendment and cessation process, with appeal rights for specified decisions.

When to request an EHCP needs assessment alongside the PEP

You should consider requesting an EHCP needs assessment if any of these apply:

  • The child is significantly behind peers academically and progress is slow.
  • Evidence suggests they may have SEN and may need provision through an EHC plan; a diagnosis is not required.
  • They have been excluded, are on a reduced timetable, or are out of school.
  • Their behaviour at school is described as “dysregulation” or “trauma response”.
  • The school is using PP+ to pay for what looks like SEND provision.
  • A transition is coming (primary→secondary, Year 11→post-16).

You can ask the Virtual School Head, the social worker, the school, or you can submit the request yourself — see who can request what.

Trauma can mask — or be confused with — SEND

Many children in care have lived through trauma. Trauma changes how the brain develops: attention, memory, emotional regulation and social skills can all be affected. These look a lot like the things schools describe as SEND.

The risk goes both ways. Sometimes a genuine, lifelong special educational need (such as autism or a learning difficulty) is dismissed as “just behaviour” or “just attachment”. Other times a child’s trauma response is labelled as SEND when what they actually need is therapeutic support.

A good EHCP needs assessment looks at both. Push for assessments from an Educational Psychologist and a clinician who understands developmental trauma, and ask that both sets of needs are written into Section B (needs) and met in Section F (provision).