Your rights

On this page you will find information and practical advice about your rights as a young person with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). 

Under the Children and Families Act 2014 , you are classed as a young person on the last Friday in June after you turn 16, until you turn 25.

We hope that you find this page helpful. If you have any questions,  you can contact us and we will try to answer them for you.

SEND law and legislation

There are some laws and legislation about SEND, to make sure that you are treated fairly and recieve the support you need from schools, settings, colleges and the local authority (Leeds City Council). These are:                                 

  • The Children and Families Act (CAFA).

    • This is law that the Local Authority (Leed City Council) and schools must follow. Section 3 of this act is about young people.                             

    Click here for the Young Person's guide to the Children and Families Act.

  • The SEND Code of Practice (COP).

    • This is legislation, it provides more detail about the law (CAFA).                            

    If it says that the LA (Leeds City Council), school or college MUST do something then this is a legal request that they have to follow.                             

    If it says SHOULD, then this is guidance and not law that they should follow unless there is a good reason not to.                              

  • The SEND Regulations and 2015 ammendments (SEND Regs).

    • These are legally binding rules to support the law (CAFA).                              

  • The SEND regulations for personal budgets.

    • These are legally binding rules and regulations about direct payments and personal budgets that support the law (CAFA).                              

  • The Equality Act 2010 (EA).

    • This is law to protect you from being unfairly treated (discriminated against) because of any disability that you may have.                              

  • The Equality Act Disability Regulations 2010.

    • These are legally binding rules to support the law (EA).                              


Your views, wishes and feelings

As a young person, you have more say about your SEND, education and any decisions that are made about it, but you can still ask a parent/ carer or someone you trust to help or advocate for you if you prefer.                         

The SEND code of practice tells us that as a young person, Leeds City council must:                        

  • Listen to and respect your views, wishes and feelings
  • Involve you in decisions about your education
  • Give you relevant information about your education
  • Accept information from you about your education


What can i do?

If you need support to express your views, wishes and feelings you can speak to your school, college or setting, support worker, parent/ carer or trusted individual to help you to think about and record your thoughts and wishes.                

You can find more advice about this in our support toolkit.

Unhappy with your support or a SEND process?

If you are unhappy with a matter to do with your SEND you have the right to make a complaint about it.                

The DfE have made a young person’s guide about making a complaint that you might find helpful.               

Ipsea can also provide you with information about making a complaint, or challenging a decision.            


More information, advice and support (IAS)

Leeds SENDIASS are not responsible for the content of sites or services offered by third parties.

You can also find more resources on our useful SEND links and tools page.



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