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Find out about changes to our services and Christmas opening times on our Festive information page. To find out when your bin will be collected over the festive period, visit Changes to County Durham bin collections at Christmas.

Due to maintenance, the following systems will be unavailable from 11.45am on Tuesday 24 December until 8.00am on Thursday 2 January: our online Council Tax, business rates and housing benefit services, and our welfare assistance form. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Durham was last inspected in June 2024. As part of the inspection process, inspectors received feedback and views from 1,500 children, young people, families and partners. You can read more about the feedback from the inspectors on our Strategies, plans, policies and inspections page.

Beyond education - what happens next for young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)


Young people usually complete their further education studies by the time they are 18 or 19 years old.

However, young people with Education and Health Care Plans (EHCPs) may need longer to complete their education and their EHCP can remain in place up to 25 years old however there are reasons why the council will propose to cease the plan before then:

  • The young person no longer requires the support of an EHCP (that is, additional support above and beyond what is normally available in an educational setting). 
  • The young person is moving onto employment or higher education. There is separate support funding for young persons in work or in higher education.
  • The young person is moving onto a volunteering or care placement.
  • Post-19, the young person is no longer interested in engaging in education. 

The proposal to cease an Education, Health and Care plan will be discussed at the young person's annual review. When an EHCP is ceased, there are teams who are able to support a young person to continue their transition into independence and adulthood:



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