SEN Support

Your child does not need to wait for a diagnosis before school starts responding to identified SEN.

A diagnosis can be useful evidence, but SEN Support is about the child's special educational needs and the support required in education. Waiting for a diagnostic label should not replace identifying needs, putting support in place and reviewing whether it works.

Useful question: “What need or barrier has the school identified, what support is currently in place, and how is the impact being reviewed?”

Needs first, label second

Government SEND guidance expects schools to identify and support pupils with SEN. Current school-census guidance also makes clear that a specialist assessment is not required simply to record the main type of SEN. A formal diagnosis may strengthen understanding of a child's profile, but it is not the starting gun for every form of SEN Support.

Experts at Hand does not create a new waiting gate

From September 2026, the national Experts at Hand programme is intended to bring specialist input such as educational psychology, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and specialist teaching closer to mainstream settings. The parent-facing DfE guidance says support should be based on need rather than diagnosis and should be additional to existing provision.

Do not let a new programme become a reason to delay existing support.

A child should not be told they must wait for Experts at Hand before the school considers SEN Support or reasonable adjustments, or before an EHC needs assessment is considered where the statutory test may be met.

What to ask the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO)

What needs or barriers have been identified?
What evidence is the school relying on?
What support or intervention is currently being provided?
How often is progress or access reviewed?
What has changed as a result of the support?
What happens next if the child is still not making expected progress or accessing education?

Keep diagnosis and support as separate questions

Assessment pathway

Does the child need an autism, ADHD or other clinical assessment, and who can make the referral?

School support now

What educational need exists today, and what can the setting reasonably do while any assessment is pending?

Waiting list does not mean waiting for all support.

Local NHS services also emphasise needs-led support while neurodevelopmental assessment pathways are being considered or awaited.

Written & reviewed by William McAllister, Founder, In Your Corner.

Practical parent-advocacy guidance, not legal or clinical advice. Reviewed 7 September 2026 against the official sources linked on this page. See how we write, check and correct guidance.

Official sources / further reading

Special educational needs support (GOV.UK) ↗SEND Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years (GOV.UK) ↗Experts at Hand: information for parents (GOV.UK) ↗School census 2026–27: SEN data guidance (GOV.UK) ↗Kent & Medway NHS: needs-led support / autism assessment service ↗

Reviewed 7 September 2026. Individual support depends on the child's needs and the setting's duties; this page is not a legal or clinical assessment.