EOTAS EHCP — prepare your Tribunal pack with support | EHCP Clarity
EOTAS

EOTAS Tribunal pack — get it ready with support

EOTAS is education delivered outside school under section 61, where the local authority is satisfied no school placement can meet your child's needs. We prepare the pack from failed-placement evidence, professional reports, and a costed EOTAS proposal. You review it. You send it.

Match my situation

Get my EOTAS pack prepared — £449See a real example pack

1
2
3
4

What is your EHCP situation?

Tell us where you are. We match the document you need to send, then an assigned case professional prepares it. You review it. You send it.

What we prepare for this

Challenge to the plan · £449

Grounds or a letter when the plan, placement, provision or timescales are wrong.

  • The document you send
  • How to send it, and what to attach
  • One revision round of factual corrections

One case professional prepares and checks it. You review it. You send it.

Typically 5 working days after we have what we need.

Other documents: request letter £249 · appeal grounds £349 · challenge to the plan £449

Sample of a plan challenge · mock names
In Section F, the provision described as “access to adult support as required” and “regular speech and language therapy” does not say how much support [CHILD] will receive, or who will deliver it.

Read the full examples · What each price includes

Case preparation support only · Not legal advice or tribunal representation

Quick answer

EOTAS is named in Section I of an EHCP and the provision package is set out in Section F. The legal test under section 61 CFA 2014 is whether it would be inappropriate for provision to be made in a school. Packages commonly include specialist tutoring, therapeutic input, online learning, and social opportunities. EOTAS is increasingly common for children with severe anxiety, complex needs, or where school placements have demonstrably failed.

The legal basis for EOTAS

Section 61 of the Children and Families Act 2014 provides that the local authority may arrange for any special educational provision in a child's EHCP to be made otherwise than in a school or post-16 institution where the local authority is satisfied that it would be inappropriate for the provision (or any part of it) to be made in such a setting.

The SEND Code of Practice (paragraph 9.131) confirms EOTAS as a legitimate option and notes that local authorities should consider EOTAS where the evidence shows that school provision would be inappropriate. There is no minimum or maximum age for EOTAS — it can be specified for children at any age including post-16.

EOTAS is distinct from elective home education (parent-led under section 7 of the Education Act 1996) — under EOTAS, the local authority arranges and funds the provision; the parent is not the educator. The child retains all EHCP rights including annual review, amendment, and Tribunal appeal.

When EOTAS is appropriate

EOTAS is appropriate where, after careful consideration of the child's needs and what schools can offer, no school placement is suitable. The section 61 test requires evidence that school would be 'inappropriate' — a high bar but one that many children's circumstances clearly meet:

  • Severe anxiety / EBSA where multiple placements have failed despite reasonable adaptation
  • Complex medical needs requiring specialist environment unavailable in schools
  • PDA profiles where school environments cannot manage demand and adapt
  • Profound mental health needs requiring therapeutic-led approach incompatible with school setting
  • Sensory needs that cannot be accommodated in any school environment
  • Autism profiles with extreme demand intolerance and sensory dysregulation
  • Trauma-related needs requiring intensive therapeutic input alongside education
  • Failed transitions to multiple settings demonstrating school is not viable

What an EOTAS package typically includes

Specialist 1:1 tutoring

Typically 10-25 hours per week of qualified teacher input. Subjects matched to child's profile. Often covering core curriculum (maths, English, sciences) plus areas of interest.

Online learning platform

Wraparound online curriculum (e.g. Interhigh, Wolsey Hall, EdPlace) for breadth beyond what tutors can deliver. Specified hours per week.

Therapeutic input

Counselling, psychotherapy, OT sensory work, SALT social communication work — quantified per week with named professionals.

Social opportunities

Small group activities, special interest clubs, supervised peer engagement, often through specialist providers. Specified frequency.

Life skills and PHSE

Independent living skills, road safety, money skills, online safety, healthy relationships — important particularly for older children and post-16.

Physical activity

Swimming, riding, sport, outdoor education. Critical for wellbeing and motor development.

Forest school / outdoor education

Increasingly common element — sensory regulation benefits and engagement for many neurodivergent children.

Coordination and review

Named coordinator (often local authority case worker or independent specialist), termly reviews, parent–local authority communication structure.

What strong cases do next

  1. 1

    Document why school is not appropriate

    Failed placements, escalating anxiety or distress, attendance trajectory, behaviour incidents, mental health deterioration. The section 61 test requires evidence that no school can meet needs — build the picture.

  2. 2

    Get professional support for EOTAS

    EP report recommending EOTAS, CAMHS or paediatric input on why school is not sustainable, OT or SALT recommendations on environmental needs. Where professionals support EOTAS, the case is significantly stronger.

  3. 3

    Cost a comprehensive EOTAS package

    Identify tutors (often through specialist agencies), therapeutic input, online learning platforms, and social opportunities. Set out hours, named providers, and how each element meets need. A detailed proposal shows the local authority how EOTAS can work in practice.

3 further steps when you submit or appeal — Requesting, appealing, and negotiating Section F are where most parents need help — that is what we prepare for you.

This guide shows what strong cases look like. We prepare the request letter, appeal grounds, or plan letter for your route.

Match my situation →Get yours prepared — From £249

EOTAS costs and the cost argument

EOTAS packages are local-authority funded once named in the EHCP. The local authority may query the overall cost, but the starting point is whether school is inappropriate under section 61 — not whether the package is cheap.

  • Set out each element of provision in Section F — hours, frequency, who delivers it, and qualifications
  • Name tutors, therapists, and other providers where possible
  • Show how the package meets needs that named schools cannot reliably meet
  • Explain why repeated mainstream or specialist school placements have not worked, if that is your situation

Where school placements are genuinely inappropriate, the Tribunal focuses on whether your EOTAS proposal can meet need. Local authorities cannot lawfully refuse EOTAS purely on cost where school is inappropriate.

Building your EOTAS case

  • Evidence of failed school placements (attendance, incident logs, school records)
  • Professional reports (EP, CAMHS, paediatric, OT, SALT) recommending against school or for EOTAS
  • Mental health evidence showing school environment is harmful
  • Detailed EOTAS proposal with named providers and quantified hours
  • Clear comparison with why named school alternatives cannot meet need

3 more items depending on your case. Plus turning this evidence into one coherent pack an LA or tribunal takes seriously.

This guide shows what strong cases look like. We prepare the request letter, appeal grounds, or plan letter for your route.

Match my situation →Get yours prepared — From £249

Common local authority pushbacks on EOTAS

  1. "There is a suitable school" — challenge by detailing why named schools cannot meet needs (sensory, environment, expertise, evidence of past failures).
  2. "EOTAS is too expensive" — focus on section 61 inappropriateness of school and show how your proposed package meets need.
  3. "Child needs to be in school for socialisation" — counter with the EOTAS social provision (groups, clubs, supervised peer time) and evidence that school socialisation has failed.
  4. "EOTAS is not for children of compulsory school age" — wrong; section 61 has no age restriction.
  5. "We need to try another school first" — only sustainable where there is genuinely a placement that may meet needs; otherwise this prolongs harm.

This guide shows what strong cases look like. We prepare the request letter, appeal grounds, or plan letter for your route.

Match my situation →Get yours prepared — From £249

Frequently asked questions

England · SEND

What is EOTAS?
EOTAS stands for Education Otherwise Than At School. It is special educational provision delivered outside a school setting under section 61 of the Children and Families Act 2014, where the local authority is satisfied that it would be inappropriate for the provision to be made in a school. EOTAS is named in Section I of the EHCP and the package of provision is set out in Section F.
When is EOTAS appropriate?
EOTAS is appropriate where, after careful consideration, no school placement can meet the child's needs — typically due to extreme anxiety, sensory needs, complex medical needs, mental health needs, or a combination of factors that make any school environment unsustainable. Section 61 requires the local authority to be satisfied it would be 'inappropriate' for provision to be made in a school.
How is EOTAS different from home education?
Home education (under section 7 of the Education Act 1996) is parent-arranged and parent-funded. EOTAS is local authority-arranged and local authority-funded under an EHCP. The local authority delivers a package of provision through tutors, therapists and other professionals; the parent is not the educator. EOTAS retains all EHCP rights including annual review and Tribunal appeal.
What can an EOTAS package include?
Typical packages include: 1:1 specialist tutoring (often 10-25 hours per week), online learning, therapeutic input (CAMHS, OT, SALT, counselling), social opportunities (clubs, group activities), life skills work, physical activity, and often a forest school or outdoor education element. Section F must specify each component with hours, frequency, and qualifications.
How much does EOTAS cost the local authority?
EOTAS packages are funded by the local authority once named in the EHCP. Costs depend on the hours, specialists, and setting in your proposed package. Local authorities sometimes resist EOTAS on cost grounds, but where school placement is genuinely inappropriate they cannot lawfully refuse solely because of cost.
How do I argue for EOTAS at the SEND Tribunal?
The argument has two parts: first, that no school placement can meet the child's needs (the section 61 test), and second, that the EOTAS package proposed is appropriate. Evidence: failed school placements, professional reports recommending against school, mental health input, attendance trajectory, and a costed EOTAS proposal demonstrating it can meet needs.
Can EOTAS be temporary or part-time?
EOTAS can include flexi-schooling arrangements (some EOTAS plus part-time school attendance) where appropriate. EOTAS can also be reviewed at annual review and may transition to school placement as the child's needs change. Some children remain on EOTAS for years; others use it as a stepping stone.
What if the local authority refuses EOTAS in Section I?
Section I is appealable to the SEND Tribunal. You have 2 months from the final EHCP. The Tribunal can specify EOTAS in Section I where the evidence supports it. EOTAS appeals are increasingly common and frequently successful where school placements have demonstrably failed.

Related guides

Sources and further reading

  1. Children and Families Act 2014 — section 61 (special educational provision otherwise than in schools) — Statutory basis for EOTAS
  2. SEND Code of Practice 2015 — paragraphs 9.131 to 9.140 (EOTAS) — Statutory guidance on EOTAS
  3. Education Act 1996 — section 19 (local authority duty to arrange suitable education) — Bridge duty often invoked alongside EOTAS
  4. IPSEA — EOTAS guidance — Specialist EOTAS guidance from IPSEA