How long does the EHCP process take?

The statutory deadline from request to final EHCP is 20 weeks. However, many local authorities exceed this timeline. If your local authority misses deadlines, there are formal steps you can take to challenge unlawful delays.

What if the local authority refuses an EHC needs assessment?

If the local authority refuses an EHC needs assessment, you have the right to appeal to the SEND Tribunal within 2 months of the decision. 96% of SEND Tribunal appeals succeed in the family's favour. We can help you prepare a strong appeal.

Do I need an EHCP if my child is doing well academically?

Academic performance is not the legal test for an EHCP. The test is whether your child has special educational needs that cannot be met without the legally protected provision an EHCP provides. Many children who mask their difficulties at school still need significant support.

What areas of England do you cover?

We provide EHCP consultancy for families across England. EHCP law is national, so we can help regardless of your local authority. We work with families in London, Manchester, Birmingham, and all other regions.

How much does EHCP consultancy cost?

We offer transparent pricing with fixed-fee packages for EHCP applications, amendments, and appeals. We also offer document review services starting from £195. Contact us for a quote tailored to your specific situation.

Legal

Terms & Conditions

Last updated: 14 June 2026

Important notice: EHCP Help is a trading name of Denton Search Limited. EHCP Help is an independent SEND advocacy and consultancy service. We are not a law firm, we do not provide regulated legal services under the Legal Services Act 2007, and nothing in these terms or on this website constitutes legal advice. We cannot guarantee any particular outcome from the EHCP process. Please read these terms carefully before engaging our services.

1. About us

EHCP Help is a trading name of Denton Search Limited (“EHCP Help”, “we”, “us”, “our”). Denton Search Limited is a company registered in England and Wales (Company No. 06747105). Our website is ehcp-help.co.uk.

Contact: hello@ehcp-help.co.uk

2. These terms

These Terms & Conditions (“Terms”) govern your use of our website and the purchase of any consultancy or advocacy services from EHCP Help. By placing an order or engaging our services, you agree to these Terms. Please read them carefully before proceeding.

References to “EHCP Help”, “we”, “us” and “our” in these Terms mean Denton Search Limited trading as EHCP Help. The contracting party for all services is Denton Search Limited.

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

3. Nature of our services

EHCP Help provides:

Independent SEND advocacy and consultancy
EHCP application support and document drafting assistance
EHCP amendment support
SEND Tribunal appeal preparation (document preparation and case organisation; not legal representation)
Document review and analysis
Parental guidance and strategic advice on the EHCP process

We are not a law firm. We do not provide regulated legal services under the Legal Services Act 2007. We are not solicitors, barristers, or legal executives. Our services are advocacy, consultancy, and administrative support. For formal legal representation, including representation at Tribunal hearings by a solicitor or barrister, you should engage a regulated education law solicitor.

Nothing we say or provide, verbally, in writing, or through our platform, constitutes legal advice. You should seek independent legal advice for matters requiring it.

4. No guarantee of outcomes

We cannot and do not guarantee any particular outcome from the EHCP process. Whether a local authority agrees to assess, issues an EHCP, or amends a plan depends on many factors outside our control, including the evidence available, the local authority's decision-making, and the specific facts of your child's case.

Our services are designed to maximise the quality and rigour of your case. We work to the highest standards of advocacy practice. However, engaging EHCP Help does not guarantee that your child will receive an EHCP, that an appeal will succeed, or that any particular provision will be secured.

Any statistics we reference on our website (including Tribunal success rates) reflect sector-wide published data, not EHCP Help-specific outcome rates. Past outcomes do not guarantee future results.

5. Packages and pricing

Our service packages, fees, and what is included in each are set out on our Costs page. All prices are in pounds sterling (GBP).

VAT: EHCP Help is not currently VAT registered. The prices shown are the total price payable. No VAT is added. If our VAT registration status changes, we will update our pricing accordingly and give clients reasonable notice.

We reserve the right to change our prices at any time. Any change will not affect orders already placed and paid for.

6. Placing an order and contract formation

A contract between you and EHCP Help is formed when:

You place an order through our website or by direct agreement, and
We confirm acceptance of your order by email.

We may decline to accept an order at our discretion, for example where we cannot provide the relevant service or where there is a conflict of interest. In this case we will refund any payment made in full.

7. Your right to cancel (Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013)

14-day cooling-off period

If you are a consumer (an individual acting outside a business), you have the right to cancel your order within 14 days of the date of contract (the date we confirm your order by email), without giving any reason.

To exercise your right to cancel, you must inform us by email at hello@ehcp-help.co.uk before the 14-day period expires. You may use the model cancellation form below, but it is not obligatory.

Model Cancellation Form (optional)

To: EHCP Help, hello@ehcp-help.co.uk

I hereby give notice that I cancel my contract for the supply of the following service: [service name]
Ordered on: [date]
Name: [your name]
Signature (if paper form): [signature]
Date: [date]

Cancellation when work has already started

If you request that we begin work within the 14-day cancellation period, you must do so explicitly (by email or through our booking form). By requesting early commencement of services you acknowledge that:

If services are fully completed within the 14-day period, you lose your right to cancel.
If services are partially completed when you cancel, you will be liable to pay a proportionate amount for the work completed up to the point of cancellation. We will calculate this based on the time and work invested relative to the full package.

If you do not request early commencement, we will not begin substantive work until the 14-day period has elapsed.

Refunds on cancellation

Where you cancel within the 14-day period and work has not commenced, we will refund the full amount paid within 14 days of receiving your cancellation notice, using the same payment method you used.

8. Cancellation outside the 14-day period

After the 14-day cooling-off period, cancellations are handled as follows:

Before work commences: full refund minus a £50 administration fee.
After work commences: we will invoice for work completed at a rate proportionate to the package fee. Any overpayment will be refunded; any shortfall will be invoiced.
After delivery of final documents: no refund is due, as the service has been fully provided.

Cancellations must be notified in writing to hello@ehcp-help.co.uk.

9. The phase guarantee

For clients who purchase the Application Support package: if the local authority refuses to carry out an EHC needs assessment, we will draft the grounds of appeal letter at no additional charge.

This guarantee is subject to the following conditions:

The refusal must relate to the specific application we prepared for you.
You must notify us of the refusal within 30 days of receiving it.
The guarantee covers the grounds of appeal letter only. It does not include Tribunal hearing preparation, representation, or the full Tribunal & Appeal Preparation package.
The guarantee lapses if you do not wish to appeal or if the appeal window has already closed at the time of notification.

10. Your obligations

To allow us to provide our services effectively, you agree to:

Provide accurate and complete information about your child's needs and circumstances.
Share all relevant documents in a timely manner.
Respond to our requests for information or approval within reasonable timeframes.
Notify us promptly of any changes in your situation, including new local authority decisions, dates, or correspondence received.
Not use our documents or advice to mislead the local authority or any third party.

We accept no liability for poor outcomes caused by inaccurate or incomplete information provided by you, or by your failure to respond in time to critical deadlines.

11. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

EHCP Help is not liable for any failure by a local authority to issue, amend, or maintain an EHCP, or for any decision made by the SEND Tribunal.
EHCP Help is not liable for any indirect, consequential, or special loss, including loss of provision, loss of educational opportunity, emotional distress, or financial loss arising from an unsuccessful EHCP outcome.
Our total liability to you for any claim arising from our services is limited to the total fees you paid to us for the specific service to which the claim relates.

Nothing in these Terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any liability that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law including the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

12. Intellectual property

Documents, letters, and written materials we produce for you are provided for your personal use in connection with your child's EHCP case. You may not resell, sublicense, or use them for any commercial purpose. EHCP Help retains intellectual property rights in its methods, templates, and operational frameworks.

13. Confidentiality

We treat all information you share with us as strictly confidential. We will not disclose your personal or case information to any third party except as required to deliver our services (see our Privacy Policy) or as required by law.

14. Complaints

If you are unhappy with any aspect of our service, please contact us in the first instance at hello@ehcp-help.co.uk. We aim to acknowledge all complaints within 2 working days and to resolve them within 14 working days.

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, you may refer it to an alternative dispute resolution scheme. We will provide details of the relevant scheme at the time of complaint.

15. Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms at any time. The updated version will be posted on this page with a revised “last updated” date. Changes will not affect any contract already in place at the time of the change.

16. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any dispute arising from these Terms or our services will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.