Parental Experiences of Taking Part in Collaborative Psychological Assessment Meetings within the Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment for their Child’s Special Educational Needs

The Children and Families Act (2014) and Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice (Department for Education [DfE] & Department for Health [DoH], 2015) emphasises collaboration with parents during the Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) of their child’s special needs. Despite this, parents continue to express dissatisfaction concerning their involvement within the EHCNA process. In response, one Educational Psychology Service in England introduced a novel approach to the educational psychology EHCNA, namely, a ‘Collaborative Assessment Meeting’ (CAM). During these meetings, parents, Educational Psychologists (EPs) and other professionals jointly record the child’s strengths and needs, alongside suggested outcomes and educational provision. This study explores parents’ experiences of taking part in CAMs. The experiences of three parents were gathered via semi-structured interviews and responses analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Four group experiential themes were identified: ‘power’, ‘emotional aspects’, ‘collaboration’ and ‘impact of the wider EHCNA process and education system’. Findings indicate the pivotal role of professionals, notably the EP, in mitigating the negative impact of power upon parents, utilising interpersonal skills to support emotional demands, and enabling parents’ full involvement during the process. The implications for EPs and other professionals involved with parents during the EHCNA process are outlined.