You spent a significant amount of money commissioning an independent Educational Psychologist report. The report describes your child's needs clearly and professionally. You submitted it as part of the assessment process. And then the local authority issued a draft plan that does not reflect it, or a refusal letter that does not mention it at all.
This happens regularly. It is infuriating. But it is also legally significant.
A local authority cannot lawfully dismiss independent professional evidence without engaging with it. The SEND Code of Practice makes clear that all relevant evidence must be considered as part of the assessment. Ignoring a report is not the same as disagreeing with it. The local authority must explain why it has reached a different conclusion, not simply proceed as if the report does not exist.
If the draft plan fails to reflect the independent EP's findings, this is grounds for a formal amendment request. Write to the LA identifying the specific recommendations in the report and the specific provisions (or absences of provision) in the draft plan that fail to reflect them. Ask for an explanation of why each recommendation has not been incorporated.
If the LA refuses to assess and does not reference your EP report in its reasoning, this strengthens your Tribunal appeal. At Tribunal, the independent EP's report becomes part of your evidence bundle. The LA will be required to explain, before a Tribunal judge, why they did not give weight to it.
Independent professional evidence is most powerful when it is properly presented and formally submitted. We help families ensure their reports are framed in the way that the assessment and appeal process requires them to be.