18-25 year olds | PfA | Kirklees SEND Local Offer

Continue to explore a range of options, such as supported employment apprenticeships, work-based learning, work-related learning at college,
paid work, self-employment, higher education and voluntary work.
You may want to consider applying for a 16-19 bursary to help with education
costs. Ask your child’s post-16 provider for more information.
Consider the support needs to access services via Jobcentre Plus.
For example, a Disability Employment advisor and Access to Work funding.

Special schools:
Young people aged 19 cannot remain in a special school unless they are completing a
secondary education course they started before they were 18 years old. They will need
to move to college if they wish to continue their education or training.

Short break services for children (e.g.Direct Payments) will normally end when the young person turns 18.
Consider opening a bank account for the young person if they don't already have one, so they can receive benefits and other money.
People over the age of 18 may have to contribute towards the cost of any support they receive. The Local Authority will carry out a financial assessment to check how much your child can afford to contribute towards their care and support.
Explore a range of housing options.
Young people may want to access an advocate to help them share their views
Think about independent travel training to enable your child to travel from home to their education setting/place of work on their own. The Community Enablement Team can support with this if eligible.

Annual health checks continue via GP for people with Learning Disabilities aged 14+.
Some young people may need a Continuing Healthcare (Adults) assessment. Health professionals involved with your child should consider if this is appropriate and agree who is best placed to complete it.

Identify out of school/college activities the young person wants to do. This may include time spent away from home and the area.
Support the young person in finding local community spaces they can access, such as parks and libraries.
Encourage the young person to stay in touch with friends and make plans for socialising.
Look into any specialist social groups/youth groups that your child may want to attend. You could also buddy up with others who are in the same position to create their own groups supported by personal budgets/direct payments etc. Local support groups may be a good place to find these opportunities.
Consider whether the young person is moving to university, what support is available, and what's available in the wider community. What life skills might they need to know to support this transition?

The Mental Capacity Act - does the young person need support to make informed decisions?

The annual review process continues. The local authority can keep an EHC plan in place until a young person turns 25. The EHC plan may be ceased if the young person is:

accessing higher education
accessing paid work
aged 18 or over and has left education and no longer wishes to engage in further learning.
leaving the local authority and moving to another area.

If a young person has an EHC plan and leaves education but then decides they wish to return (and is still under 25), the local authority will consider whether to revive and renew the previous EHC plan. It is possible that the young person
will have to go through the full EHC needs assessment if there have been significant
changes.