📚 SEND Code of Practice 0-25: Which Settings and Institutions Are Covered? | SEND 行为准则 0 至 25 岁的适用机构范围
The Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years is the single most important piece of statutory guidance in the English SEN system. Students often know what it says about assessments and EHC plans, but far fewer can explain precisely which settings, institutions and professionals are bound by it, and which are not. This article maps the scope of the Code setting by setting, from a childminder looking after a two-year-old to a further education college supporting a 24-year-old with an EHC plan, and clarifies the boundaries of that 0-25 range.
《特殊教育需要与残障（SEND）行为准则：0 至 25 岁》是英格兰 SEN 体系中最重要的法定指导文件。学生通常熟悉其中关于评估与 EHC 计划的内容，但很少有人能准确说明：究竟哪些机构、哪些专业人员受其约束，哪些不受约束。本文将按机构类型逐一梳理准则的适用范围——从照看两岁幼儿的注册保育员，到支持 24 岁持 EHC 计划学生的继续教育学院——并厘清 0 至 25 岁这一年龄区间的边界所在。
1. What the Code Actually Is | 准则究竟是什么
The Code is statutory guidance issued under section 77 of the Children and Families Act 2014. It is not legislation itself, but the law requires a long list of bodies to "have regard to" it. That phrase has a specific legal meaning: the guidance must be followed unless there is a clear and justified reason to depart from it. In practice, the Code is treated as binding in all but exceptional circumstances.
该准则是依据《2014 年儿童与家庭法》第 77 条发布的法定指导文件。它本身不是立法，但法律要求一长串机构"须顾及"（have regard to）它。这一表述具有特定法律含义：除非有明确且正当的理由偏离，否则必须遵循该指导。在实践中，除极例外情况外，准则被视为具有约束力。
The Code is built on two internal signals. The word "must" flags a legal requirement that comes from the Act or from regulations. The word "should" flags an expectation that professionals are required to follow unless they can justify a different approach. Confusing the two is one of the most common errors in written answers.
准则内部有两套信号词。"必须"（must）标示来自法律或条例的硬性要求；"应当"（should）标示一种职业期待，除非能说明理由，否则应予遵循。混淆这两者，是答题中最常见的错误之一。
must = legal duty | should = expected practice unless justified
2. The Legal Architecture Behind the Scope | 适用范围背后的法律架构
Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014 (sections 19 to 83) created the framework the Code explains: the 0-25 age range, the single category of SEN, the graduated approach, Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans, the Local Offer and personal budgets. The Code came into force on 1 April 2015, replacing the earlier 2001 Code and the 2001 SEN toolkit.
《2014 年儿童与家庭法》第三部分（第 19 至 83 条）构建了准则所解释的框架：0 至 25 岁年龄范围、单一的 SEN 类别、渐进式方法（graduated approach）、教育健康与照护（EHC）计划、地方供给信息（Local Offer）以及个人预算。准则于 2015 年 4 月 1 日生效，取代了此前的 2001 年准则与 2001 年 SEN 工具包。
Four broad areas of need run through the whole document and define who is covered: communication and interaction; cognition and learning; social, emotional and mental health; and sensory and/or physical needs. Any setting in scope must be able to identify need across all four.
贯穿全文的四类需求决定了"谁被覆盖"：沟通与互动；认知与学习；社会、情绪与心理健康；感官和/或身体需求。任何在适用范围内的机构，都必须具备识别全部四类需求的能力。
Assess → Plan → Do → Review
3. Why the Range Is 0 to 25, Not 5 to 16 | 为何范围是 0 至 25 岁而非 5 至 16 岁
Before 2014, the system effectively ran from school entry to school leaving. The Act extended it in both directions. At the lower end, it recognised that early identification from birth improves outcomes. At the upper end, it recognised that many young people with SEN need longer than their peers to complete education and training, and that support should not stop abruptly at 16 or at 18.
2014 年之前，该体系实际上覆盖的是从入学到离校的阶段。该法向两端延伸：在下端，承认从出生开始的早期识别能改善结果；在上端，承认许多有 SEN 的年轻人需要比同龄人更长的时间完成教育与培训，支持不应在 16 岁或 18 岁戛然而止。
The upper limit is conditional, not automatic. An EHC plan is not maintained simply because a young person is 24. The Code sets a test: the local authority must consider whether the young person requires additional time, in comparison to the majority of others of the same age who do not have SEN, to complete their education or training.
上限是有条件的，而非自动适用。并非年轻人 24 岁就必须维持 EHC 计划。准则设定了一项检验标准：地方当局必须考量该年轻人相较于大多数同龄且无 SEN 者，是否需要额外时间来完成其教育与培训。
0-19: universal entitlement | 19-25: conditional on the additional-time test
4. Early Years Settings: Birth to Five | 早期教育机构：0 至 5 岁
Registered childminders, private, voluntary and independent (PVI) nurseries, pre-schools, maintained nursery schools, nursery classes in primary schools and children's centres are all within scope. Their duty begins at the point a child is identified as having, or possibly having, SEN, and continues through the graduated approach of assess, plan, do and review.
注册保育员、私立／志愿／独立（PVI）幼儿园、学前班、公立托儿所、小学附设幼儿班以及儿童中心，均在适用范围内。其义务自儿童被识别为"有 SEN"或"可能有 SEN"之时起启动，并通过"评估—计划—实施—复查"的渐进式方法持续推进。
Early years providers must also appoint a special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO), keep parents informed, and involve a range of specialist services where needed, including health visitors, speech and language therapists and area SENCOs. For a child under five with significant needs, the local authority may issue an EHC plan, and the plan must name an appropriate early years setting.
早教机构还必须指定一名特殊教育需要协调员（SENCO），保持与家长的沟通，并在必要时引入一系列专业服务，包括健康访视员、言语治疗师以及区域 SENCO。对于五岁以下且有显著需求的儿童，地方当局可以签发 EHC 计划，且该计划必须指定一个适当的早教机构。
- Childminders and home-based carers | 保育员与家庭式照护者
- PVI nurseries and pre-schools | 独立／志愿／私立幼儿园与学前班
- Maintained nursery schools and nursery classes | 公立托儿所与小学附设幼儿班
- Reception classes in primary schools | 小学的学前班（Reception）
5. School-Age Provision: Schools, Academies and Free Schools | 学龄阶段：学校、学院与自由学校
Community and foundation schools, voluntary aided and controlled schools, academies, free schools, studio schools, university technical colleges and independent schools are all covered. Although academies and free schools sit outside local authority control for many purposes, their proprietors are named in section 77 and must have regard to the Code in exactly the same way as maintained schools.
社区学校与基金会学校、受助与受控教会学校、学院（academies）、自由学校、工作室学校、大学技术学院以及独立学校，均在覆盖之列。尽管学院与自由学校在许多事务上不受地方当局管辖，但其举办者被列入第 77 条，必须以与公立学校完全相同的方式顾及该准则。
Each school must have a qualified teacher designated as SENCO, must publish a SEN Information Report, and must follow the graduated approach. Where a pupil has an EHC plan, section 42 obliges the local authority to secure the specified provision, and section 68 obliges a maintained school named in the plan to admit the pupil.
每所学校必须指定一名具备资格的教师担任 SENCO，必须公布 SEN 信息报告，并须遵循渐进式方法。当学生持有 EHC 计划时，第 42 条要求地方当局落实计划中指定的供给，第 68 条则要求计划中被指定的公立学校必须接收该学生。
| Setting | 机构类型 | In scope? | 是否适用 | Key duty | 主要义务 |
| Maintained school | 公立学校 | Yes | 是 | SEN Information Report, SENCO, graduated approach | SEN 信息报告、SENCO、渐进式方法 |
| Academy / free school | 学院／自由学校 | Yes | 是 | Same duties via proprietor | 通过举办者承担相同义务 |
| Independent school | 独立学校 | Yes | 是 | Must have regard to the Code | 须顾及准则 |
6. Special Schools, Special Academies and Specialist Provision | 特殊学校、特殊学院与专业机构
Maintained special schools, special academies and special free schools are the most obvious settings within scope. They educate pupils with the most complex needs and are frequently named in EHC plans. Their governing bodies or proprietors carry the same Code duties as mainstream settings, plus an expectation of specialist teaching, therapy and multi-agency working.
公立特殊学校、特殊学院与特殊自由学校是最显而易见的适用机构。它们教育需求最为复杂的学生，并经常被 EHC 计划指定。其管理机构或举办者承担与主流学校相同的准则义务，此外还被期待提供专业教学、治疗与多机构协作。
Independent special schools and independent specialist colleges are also in scope. Those approved under section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014 can be named in an EHC plan at a parent's or young person's request, subject to the local authority's judgement about suitability, cost and efficiency. Non-maintained special schools follow a similar pattern.
独立特殊学校与独立专业学院同样在范围内。依据《2014 年儿童与家庭法》第 41 条获批的机构，可在家长或年轻人请求下被写入 EHC 计划，但须经地方当局对适当性、成本与效率作出判断。非公立特殊学校的情况亦类似。
7. Alternative Provision, PRUs and Hospital Education | 替代性教育、转介单位与医院教育
Pupil referral units (PRUs) are expressly named in the Code, and their management committees must have regard to it. Alternative provision academies and free schools, and independent alternative provision commissioned by schools or local authorities, are also within scope. These settings often serve pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs, which is one of the four Code areas.
学生转介单位（PRU）被准则明确点名，其管理委员会必须顾及准则。替代性教育学院与自由学校，以及由学校或地方当局委托的独立替代性教育机构，同样在范围内。这类机构常服务于具有社会、情绪与心理健康需求的学生，而这是准则四大领域之一。
Hospital schools and education provided in medical settings also fall within the Code's reach. Where a pupil cannot attend school for health reasons, the local authority must secure suitable education, and any SEN must be identified and supported through the graduated approach just as in a mainstream classroom.
医院学校以及在医疗场所提供的教育同样属于准则覆盖范围。当学生因健康原因无法到校时，地方当局必须确保提供适当教育，任何 SEN 都必须像在主流课堂中一样，通过渐进式方法加以识别与支持。
8. Further Education and Post-16 Settings | 继续教育与 16 岁后机构
Sixth form colleges, general further education colleges, 16-19 academies, land-based colleges and independent specialist colleges are all in scope. The governing body of an institution within the further education sector is listed in section 77, so colleges must have regard to the Code. This is the part of the system that most clearly justifies the "25" in the title.
预科学院、普通继续教育学院、16 至 19 岁学院、农业类学院以及独立专业学院，均在范围内。继续教育部门机构的治理机构被列入第 77 条，因此学院必须顾及准则。正是这一部分最清楚地体现了标题中"25"的正当性。
For students aged 16 to 25 with an EHC plan, the college must co-operate with the local authority, contribute to annual reviews, and deliver the provision specified in the plan. Where a student is aged 19 or over, the additional-time test applies again, and the plan is reviewed each year to check whether it is still needed and whether outcomes remain appropriate.
对于 16 至 25 岁持有 EHC 计划的学生，学院必须与地方当局合作、参与年度复查，并落实计划中指定的供给。当学生年满 19 岁及以上时，"额外时间"检验再次适用，且计划须每年复查，以核实其是否仍有必要、目标是否依然适当。
SEN support → EHC needs assessment → EHC plan → annual review
9. Health and Social Care Partners | 健康与社会照护合作机构
The Code is not education-only. Integrated care
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