Cambridgeshire council pledges £2m for EHCP assessment delays

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 28 Oct, 17:15 · Archive

Cambridgeshire County Council has pledged up to £2 million to address long waiting times for education, health and care plan assessments.

Cambridgeshire County Council has pledged up to £2 million to tackle long waiting times for education, health and care plan (EHCP) assessments. The funding was approved at the council's children and young people committee meeting on 20 October and is subject to final approval by the council's strategy and resources committee.

Under current law, assessments must be completed within 20 weeks, but rising demand has led to significant delays in Cambridgeshire. The additional investment will fund a 12-month recovery programme, prioritising the longest-waiting and highest-risk cases.

Cllr Edna Murphy, chair of the committee, said the council's performance on EHCP assessments 'has not been good enough' and apologised to families kept waiting 'in some cases far beyond the statutory deadline'. She said improving the timeliness and quality of EHCP processes is an absolute priority and expressed confidence the new programme would be 'a decisive turning point for the waiting families across our county'.

How it is being reported

• Cambridgeshire council pledges £2m to tackle EHCP assessment delaysLong waits for vital education, health and care plan (EHCP) assessments could finally be addressed as part of a new funding push in Cambridgeshire.Cambs Times · 28 Oct, 16:41
• Cambridgeshire council pledges £2m to tackle EHCP assessment delaysLong waits for vital education, health and care plan (EHCP) assessments could finally be addressed as part of a new funding push in Cambridgeshire.Ely Standard · 28 Oct, 16:41

In this story: Cambridgeshire County Council · Cllr Edna Murphy · Cambridgeshire

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