Data for school aged children in the year 2023 with Education, Health and Care plans - Find a freedom of information request

Can you please provide me with the data for school aged children in the year 2023 to answer the questions below broken down by ages:

5-10 (Primary)

11-15/16 years (Secondary)

For questions 3 and 5, please use the below list to categorise the setting type:

* Mainstream - (This can be academy, Free or LA maintained)

* Grammar School

* Private Independent Mainstream (NOT special)

* Specialist Resource Base/Provision or SEN unit - If so, what is the primary area of need

* Special School (Academy, Free, LA maintained)

* Independent Special School (maintained or non-maintained)

* Pupil Referral Unit (PRU)

* Alternative Provision

* Educated Otherwise than At School (EOTAS) - Section I is blank or states EOTAS

* Electively Home Educated (EHE)

* No placement available

* Other

* Don't know

Please provide the data as detailed above for the following 8 questions:

1. How many children have an Education, health and care plan (EHCP)?

2. How many children identified as autistic do not have an EHCP?

3. How many of these EHCPs identify ASD, ASC or Autism as a need or diagnosis?

4. For the EHCPs that have Autism (ASD/ASC) identified, what is the type of educational setting they attend (type of school named in Section I).

5. For the EHCPs that have Autism (ASD/ASC) identified, how many mention that a child has demand avoidance, identifiable by any of the following terms being used in any section of the EHCP:

○ Demand Avoidance

○ Pathological Demand Avoidance

○ PDA

○ Extreme demand avoidance.

○ Avoids everyday demands or activities

6. For these EHCPs that have demand avoidance mentioned, what is type of educational setting they attend (type of school named in Section I). Please use the above list to categorise setting type

7. Does your LA use the term 'Pathological Demand Avoidance' or 'PDA' or 'autism with a demand avoidant profile' in EHCPs if provided in a professional report?

8. If these terms in question 7 are not used, what is the reason for this?

1.

2.

3.

The Local Authority (LA) is unable to determine the type of setting, as required, as current performance reporting does not pull reports on types of setting, other than indicated in question 4 below.  To obtain the required data it would involve every EHCP being looked at individually - given we have in excess of 7,000 EHCPs and the work would involve approx. 10 mins per plan - the Local Authority does not have the staffing resource to retrieve the data - releasing staff to undertake this task would significantly impact on statutory work.  The LA, however hope the information provided in question 4 provides information regarding setting types and an indication of 'other'.

4.

5. The Local Authority is unable to determine the terms relating to demand avoidance, as required, as current performance reporting does not pull reports for this data.  To obtain the required data it would involve every EHCP being looked at individually - given we have in excess of 7,000 EHCPs and the work would involve approx. 10 mins per plan - the Local Authority does not have the staffing resource to retrieve the data - releasing staff to undertake this task would significantly impact on statutory work. 

6. The Local Authority is unable to determine the terms relating to demand avoidance, as required, as current performance reporting does not pull reports for this data.  To obtain the required data it would involve every EHCP being looked at individually - given we have in excess of 7,000 EHCPs and the work would involve approx. 10 mins per plan - the Local Authority does not have the staffing resource to retrieve the data - releasing staff to undertake this task would significantly impact on statutory work. 

7. Where a specialist advises the LA, without challenge, that a child/young person has 'Pathological Demand Avoidance' or PDA or 'autism with a demand avoidant profile', the LA will include this within the details of the young person's EHCP.

8. Not applicable. All data has been provided from SEN2 2023 reporting.