Lincolnshire’s section 19 policy

Section 19: reason of illness

Supporting children who are physically or mentally ill is the responsibility of all education professionals. This includes:

  • school staff
  • school support teams
  • the local authority

Everyone has a part to play in supporting children to access their right to education.

We must decide what provision is needed for a child who is too ill to attend school. Before deciding this, we must consider a range of advice and information provided by:

  • parents
  • schools
  • involved professionals

This falls within the section 19 duty. We discharge this duty via:

  • the pupil reintegration team (PRT)
  • a multi-agency medical support panel (MSP)

The PRT will lead and facilitate the work with the school and the family. They will:

  • assess any underlying medical needs
  • recommend reasonable adjustments and provision to meet those needs in relation to:
    • physical health needs
    • mental health needs
    • the Lincolnshire emotional based school avoidance (EBSA) pathway

This includes involving relevant professionals and agencies such as:

  • medical practitioners
  • mental health support and agencies
  • early help
  • social care
  • the working together team
  • the attendance teamt
  • the special educational needs and disability (SEND) team (for children with an education, health and care (EHC) plan)

Where appropriate, they will also provide information for schools around referrals to the medical support panel.

If medical evidence is not readily available, the PRT will consider liaising with involved medical professionals to gather this. For example, consultants, or the child’s GP.

For children with an EHC plan, the illness may be long-term. It may also be linked to their special educational needs or disabilities (SEND). The PRT will work with the SEND team in these cases. They will identify if the appropriate route includes arranging an early annual review of the child’s EHC plan. This will enable any updates to the EHC plan to be considered, including how the setting is utilising the SEND funding to meet need and provide reasonably accessible education. In situations such as these the SEND team will lead and facilitate the work.    

Lincolnshire’s medical needs policy outlines:

  • the support available
  • when and how provision may be arranged if needed
  • the respective roles and responsibilities of:
    • the local authority
    • schools
    • parents or carers
    • service providers
    • other agencies
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