What is the SEND Tribunal and how does it work?

The SEND Tribunal (First-tier Tribunal, SEND) is the independent court that hears parents' appeals against council decisions on EHC assessments and plans. You usually try mediation first, then appeal within two months. It sits separately from your council, and its job is to look afresh at the decision you disagree with and put it right where the law and evidence support you.

What the Tribunal can decide

Your right to appeal comes from section 51 of the Children and Families Act 2014. You can challenge the council when it:

• refuses to carry out an EHC needs assessment, or to reassess;
• refuses to issue an EHC plan after assessing;
• gets the plan itself wrong — the description of your child's needs (Section B), the support named (Section F), or the school or setting named (Section I);
• refuses to amend the plan after a review;
• decides to stop maintaining the plan.

The Tribunal can also make non-binding recommendations on the health and social care parts of a plan, but its power over those sections is recommendatory, not enforceable. Its decisions on the education sections, though, are binding on the council.

How the process works

For most appeals you first have to consider mediation. The council must tell you about your right to it (section 52 of the same Act), and you need a mediation certificate before you can register the appeal (section 55). The one exception the top results tend to bury: if your only dispute is the school or setting named in the plan (Section I, placement only), you can appeal directly without mediation or a certificate (section 55(2)).

The deadline is two months from the date on the council's decision letter or final plan, or one month from the date on the mediation certificate, whichever is later. You register online using the SEND Tribunal appeal form. The council then files its response, you exchange evidence, and most cases are decided at a hearing where you, the council, and any witnesses put their case to a judge and two specialist panel members.

Why the odds are better than they look

In 2024/25, 99% of decided SEND appeals went in families' favour (around 14,000 cases), according to the Ministry of Justice. That figure is real but easy to misread: most registered appeals never reach a hearing at all, because the council concedes once it sees you have lodged a properly evidenced appeal. Registering is often the lever in itself. The headline does not mean every family wins, and the Tribunal cannot guarantee an outcome — but it does mean an appeal is rarely a waste of time.

One thing to keep an eye on, not to worry about: the SEND system is under reform, with the 2026 Schools White Paper and the Education for All Bill proposing changes from 2030 onwards. None of this alters your appeal rights today. As of 2026 the route above is exactly the one that applies. For the precise steps and templates, see how to appeal an EHCP decision and whether you have to go to mediation.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.