There were 638,745 EHCPs in place as of January 2025, compared with 576,474 on the same day in 2024, marking year-on-year increases since 2018/19, when the number was 353,995, according to Department for Education data released today.
Just 46% of new EHCPs were issued within the 20-week timeframe – a decrease on the previous year’s 50%.
The DfE highlights a “shocking postcode lottery in timeliness” of plans being issued for children with needs including autism or epilepsy, with some areas seeing fewer than one in 20 plans issued within the required timeframe.
The number of new EHCPs issued in 2024 was 97,747 – 15.3% higher than in 2023.
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