Community Assessment Meeting (CAM)

If your child continues not to make expected progress despite specialist interventions and significant additional support you may feel that you should ask for an assessment for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). In this case, if your child is at school or nursery, you should first talk to the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) or the Headteacher. The school should then move quickly to call a Community Assessment Meeting (CAM) to map out the next steps.

A CAM is a vehicle to have an in-depth discussion about your child's needs and progress and to consider reports from the school and any other professionals working with your child. There will also be the opportunity for you and your child to make your views known.

A CAM can have two outcomes:

  • It is agreed that your child's special educational needs can be met from resources that are currently available to the school and that an EHCP is not required at this time. This will be kept under regular review
  • It is agreed that your child's special educational needs can only be met by provision available through an EHCP and that an assessment should be started (in line with the legal test in the 2014 Children and Families Act). In this case the school will communicate this conclusion to the LA and it will be considered at the next Assessment and Moderation Panel (AMP) where the final decision will be made. You can find out more about the legal test on the IPSEA website.

At all times you have the right to request an assessment directly from the LA but we would urge you to do this in co-operation with the school.

Page last reviewed: 01/03/2021

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