Before you commit to a challenge
You have the reports. You do not know whether they are enough.
We read every piece of evidence you hold for your child's special educational needs, set out in writing what it proves and what it does not, and spend an hour talking it through with you before you commit to an application, mediation or an appeal. Little Nellies is the SEND and EHCP service of Nellie Supports Ltd, a private social work practice in England.
£336 including VAT. A review of everything you hold, and an hour with the person who read it.
At a glance
Stage
Before you apply, mediate or appeal
When to use it
Any time you hold evidence and are not sure it is enough
Fee
£336 including VAT
Hours included
3
Who delivers
One Little Nellies practitioner, within a regulated social work team
Where
England only
£336
Fixed fee, including VAT
3 hours
Work included
Before you commit
When to use it
Professional help
Qualified expert MDT
Plain English explanation
What an evidence review is
It is a professional read of everything you hold for your child's special educational needs, followed by an hour on the phone and a written note. It answers one question: given this evidence, is the step you are about to take the right one, and if it is not, what is?
We read every document against the legal test that applies at your stage. We set out what each piece proves, what it does not, and where the gaps are, and we tell you who to ask for whatever is missing. Then we spend an hour with you talking it through, and confirm it all in writing.
It is not an assessment of your child and it is not a report for the tribunal. It produces no new evidence, and it is not a prediction of what a council or a tribunal will do. Where you need new evidence, we tell you what and from whom.
What the council must consider
When it decides whether to assess, the council must consider the evidence of your child's special educational needs, the provision already made and what effect it has had, and whether your child may need provision through an EHC plan. It must have regard to the SEND Code of Practice. It cannot apply a blanket policy, refuse because there is no diagnosis, or insist the school has spent a set amount first. Evidence that speaks directly to those questions is worth more than volume.
Is this you
Is this you?
You have a folder. School reports, a paediatrician's letter, a speech and language assessment from two years ago, and the notes you have kept yourself. Somebody has told you that you have a strong case and somebody else has told you that you do not, and neither of them has read it.
An application, a mediation or an appeal costs money and takes months. The point of a review is to find out first what your evidence actually establishes, what is missing, and whether the thing you are about to buy is the right thing to buy. Sometimes the answer is that you do not need us yet, and we will say so.
I have two years of reports and no idea whether they add up to anything.
I have been quoted for an appeal and I do not know if I need one.
The council refused and said there was not enough evidence.
Mediation is booked and I do not know what I am walking in with.
Three professionals have seen her and none of them mention each other.
I want somebody independent to tell me the truth before I spend.
What is included
What we do for this fee
3 hours of work, in three parts: the reading, the consultation and the written note.
Reading the evidence (1 to 2 hours)
The consultation (1 hour)
The written review note
The recommendation
Deliverables
How this fee is calculated
£336 including VAT for 3 hours of work: the reading, the consultation and the written note. It is a fixed fee for a fixed scope, not a discount on an hourly rate. If your file is unusually large we tell you before we start rather than afterwards, and anything outside the scope is agreed in writing first at £168 an hour including VAT.
1
The question your evidence needs to answer
The legal question depends on the stage. For an EHC needs assessment, section 36 asks whether the child or young person has or may have special educational needs and whether provision through an EHC plan may be necessary. After assessment, section 37 concerns whether that provision through a plan is necessary. A contents or placement appeal addresses the disputed needs, provision or institution under the relevant rules. We review the evidence against the question actually being decided.
The decision and legal test at this stage
The needs and provision shown by the evidence
Clear recommendations with supporting reasons
Missing, outdated or conflicting information
2
Gaps in the evidence and how to address them
Evidence fails for predictable reasons. It names a diagnosis but never describes the impact in the classroom. It recommends support without saying how much, how often or by whom. It is out of date, or it comes from one professional when the need crosses three. Or it is strong, and has simply never been put to the council in a form the council has to answer. A review tells you which of those you are dealing with.
Children and Families Act 2014, sections 20, 21, 36, 37 and 38; Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014, regulations 6 and 12; SEND Code of Practice 2015, paragraphs 6.44 to 6.56 and 9.3 to 9.16.
Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles.
The test
How we assess your EHCP evidence
Instruction
You send us everything you hold. There is no need to sort it first; we would rather see the folder as it is.
Reading
Every document is read against the test that applies at your stage: application, mediation or appeal.
The consultation
One hour with the practitioner who read the file, at a time that suits you, with your questions answered.
The review note
A written note follows the call, setting out what the evidence proves, what is missing and what we would do next.
Your decision
You decide what to do with it. If that means instructing us, the review is the first piece of work on your file. If it means waiting, we say so.
What happens and when
What happens and when
Evidence we build
Evidence we work from
Whatever you hold. The more complete the folder, the more useful the review.
School records: SEN support plans, provision maps, reviews and interventions already tried
Professional advice: educational psychology, speech and language, occupational therapy, paediatrics and CAMHS
Any existing plan, draft plan or refusal letter, with the council's covering letter
Your own record: what you see at home, and what you have already asked for
Attendance, exclusion and behaviour records where they are part of the picture
What you receive
What you receive
Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles.
A written review note, worked through your evidence document by document
What each document proves, and what it does not
The gaps, and who to ask for what is missing
An assessment of your position at your stage: application, mediation or appeal
A recommendation on whether to proceed, and on what
A note of the consultation, so you have the conversation in writing
Free help exists
Free help exists, and we say so
Before you pay anyone, including us, there is free and good help available in England. We name it because you should use it, and because a review is worth nothing if you did not need to buy one.
IPSEA
Free legal advice on SEND law, a helpline, and a tribunal support service that can include representation. ipsea.org.uk
SOS!SEN
A free advice line and low cost document services from a registered charity, including plan analysis and appeal grounds. sossen.org.uk
SENDIASS
Your local statutory information, advice and support service, free to every family and independent of the council's decision.
What we add
Time, a regulated practitioner reading your whole file rather than one document, and a written view you can act on. If free help can do what you need, use free help.
The evidence review
£336 including VAT
- 3 hours of work
- Every report and record you hold, read against the test at your stage
- A one hour consultation with the practitioner who read it
- A written review note and a note of the call
Invoiced at instruction.
What usually follows
From £720 including VAT
- Application: £1,080 including VAT
- Mediation: application and preparation £720, attendance £480
- Refusal appeal: £3,300 including VAT, paid in stages
- Content appeal with the working document: £5,400 including VAT
- Hearing representation, only if a hearing takes place: £1,080
Priced separately from the review.
The journey
The journey, and what it costs at each stage
The review is bought once, before anything else. What follows depends on what the evidence turns out to support.
For parents
You find out what you are holding before you spend on a challenge, and you get an hour to ask whatever you want.
For SENCOs and professionals who refer
A proportionate first step for a family who is not ready to instruct, with a written note the school can work from.
Why us
Why families choose Little Nellies for an evidence review
Most families buy an appeal service because they are frightened, not because they know their evidence supports one. This service exists so the decision is made on the file rather than on fear. Little Nellies is the SEND and EHCP service of Nellie Supports Ltd, a regulated social work practice with registered social workers and a Chartered Psychologist.
Why families choose Little Nellies
Read by a registered social worker, not run through a checklist
An hour with the person who actually read the file
We tell you when you do not need us
Every stage covered: application, mediation and appeal
A written note, not just a conversation
The review carries into the case if you go on to instruct us
A mother came to us with a bundle she had been building for two years: a diagnosis of ADHD, three school reports, an occupational therapy assessment and a letter from a paediatrician. She was a fortnight from lodging an appeal against a refusal to assess, and had been quoted for the full appeal by two providers.
The review found that the strongest document in the bundle, the occupational therapy assessment, had never been sent to the council. The paediatrician's letter named the diagnosis but said nothing about the impact in class. The school reports showed two years of interventions and no measurable progress, which was the single most useful thing she held, and she had not realised it.
The recommendation was to lodge the appeal, to send the occupational therapy assessment straight away as late evidence, and to ask the school for a costed record of what it had already put in place. We also told her which parts of the two quotes she had been given covered work she did not need.
What the review bought her was not a decision in her favour. It was the ability to make the next decision knowing what she was holding.
This is an illustrative composite. It does not describe any individual family, and it is not a promise about any outcome.
In practice
Frequently asked questions
Add a Title
What is an EHCP evidence review?
It is an independent read of every report, letter and record you hold for your child's special educational needs, with a written note of what that evidence proves and what it does not, and a one hour consultation to talk it through before you commit to an application, mediation or an appeal.
How much does an evidence review cost with Little Nellies?
£336 including VAT, fixed. It covers the reading, the one hour consultation and the written review note.
Do I need an evidence review before I appeal?
No. It is optional at every stage. It is worth buying when you are unsure whether your evidence supports the step you are about to take, or when you want to know what is missing before you spend on a full service.
What evidence should I send?
Everything you hold, in whatever state it is in. School plans and reviews, professional reports, any plan or refusal letter, and your own notes. You do not need to organise it first.
Will you tell me if I do not have a case?
Yes. The review is worth nothing if it only ever says proceed. Where the evidence does not support the step you were planning, we say so, and we say what would need to change.
Are you solicitors?
No. Little Nellies is the SEND service of Nellie Supports Ltd, a private social work practice. We provide advocacy and social work assessment, not regulated legal advice, and we tell you when a case needs a solicitor.
EHCP Appeal Evidence Guide
Section K EHCP Evidence Explained
EHCP Needs Assessment Process
Read more
Related EHCP guides
EHCP application
If the evidence supports a request for an assessment, this is the next step.
Refusal appeal
If the council has already refused to assess or to issue, this is the appeal.
Content appeal
If the plan exists but the provision is wrong, this is the appeal on Sections B, F and I.
Other stages
Book a call
Book your free 15-minute call
Tell us where you are: what you hold, what the council has said, and what you are thinking of doing next. On the call we confirm the stage, any deadline in play and whether this is the right service. We do not give advice on the call and we do not pressure you to buy.
Written by Ben Slater, Founder and Principal Social Worker, registered social worker (Social Work England). Reviewed by Ben Slater, Principal Social Worker, registered with Social Work England. Last reviewed 15 September 2026. Read our editorial policy.