Planning
SEND planning and EHCP-linked targets
Keep person-centred information, longer-term outcomes and practical next steps connected—so staff can see the direction of travel without confusing school planning with statutory EHCP case management.
The practice problem
A plan can be complete on paper and still be difficult to use
EHCP outcomes, school goals, current targets and provision operate at different levels. When they live in separate documents, staff must reconstruct the thread between them each time they plan, teach or review.
Good planning makes that thread visible while protecting professional judgement. It helps staff understand why a target matters, what support surrounds it and what evidence may change the next decision.
A connected workflow
Keep the thread visible from one decision to the next
- 1
Outcome
The meaningful longer-term change being sought.
- 2
Goal
An intermediate destination that contributes to it.
- 3
Target
A focused next step staff can work towards and review.
- 4
Support
The provision, context and adult input around the target.
- 5
Review
Evidence and professional judgement inform what happens next.
What good practice can look like
Make the hierarchy coherent, not merely tidy
Terminology varies between schools. The useful test is whether each level has a clear purpose and whether a member of staff can follow the thread in everyday work.
Start with the child, not the template
Useful planning reflects what matters to the pupil, their strengths, communication and support needs—not merely what fits neatly into a box.
Keep every level distinct
An outcome, goal and target should do different jobs. If they all say the same thing at different lengths, the hierarchy is not helping staff.
Make the next step usable
A target should be focused enough to guide practice while leaving room for staff to recognise lateral, unexpected or context-dependent progress.
Record the support around progress
Note the prompting, people, environment and provision involved. A change in independence or generalisation can matter as much as a new skill.
Product scope
What Voyage supports
Included
- Keep strengths, needs and important information in a person-centred pupil profile.
- Connect EHCP outcomes to goals and practical targets.
- Link learning evidence back to assessment and planning.
- Route work through staff approvals with a recorded history.
Current scope
- Voyage is not presented as local-authority statutory EHCP case-management software.
- Voyage does not currently generate a dedicated annual-review pack. It keeps planning, evidence, assessment, forms and decisions together so the information needed for reviews is easier to find.
- It does not make planning decisions or replace staff professional judgement.
Continue through the library
Related guidance and product detail
Practice library
Resources for planning and person-centred practice
Explore guidance on outcomes, goals, targets, provision and person-centred practice.
Read this nextPolicy update
Individual Support Plans: what schools know so far
Separate current duties from the government’s proposed digital plans.
Read this nextBuyer’s guide
Choose software around the work
Use realistic pupil journeys and a printable evaluation checklist.
Read this nextExplore Voyage with us
Bring us the real way your school works.
We can follow a pupil journey from planning through everyday evidence, professional judgement and review—and be clear about what is available now.