What prior written notice is, and how to ask for one
Prior written notice is the document a district owes when it changes something about your child, or when it declines to. You may ask for one yourself, at any time, and putting it in writing turns a spoken answer into a dated document. You can send it today: paste it into an email, replace what sits in brackets, and write down the day the school received it; the table below says which day starts each clock.
What the rule says
“Written notice … must be given to the parents … a reasonable time before the public agency … Refuses to initiate or change the identification, evaluation, or educational placement of the child or the provision of FAPE to the child.”
34 CFR 300.503(a)
A decision only counts as a decision once it arrives in that form, with its reasoning attached.
When to send it
- The team told you no at the meeting and the paperwork that followed says nothing about it.
- Service minutes changed on the new document and nobody explained where the change came from.
- A classroom or a placement moved over the summer and the first you heard of it was in September.
What happens after you send it
| What is being counted | By when | How it is counted |
|---|---|---|
| The notice arrives | Set by your state | IDEA asks only for a reasonable time, so any firmer count comes from state rules.34 CFR 300.503(a) |
| A state complaint | One year | A complaint reaches back one year from the day the state agency receives it.34 CFR 300.153(c) |
| The decision on it | 60 days | The state agency issues its written decision within 60 days of the filing.34 CFR 300.152(a) |
What the letter has to contain
The decision you mean
A district that cannot tell which meeting you mean answers the easiest one, and the record stays vague.
The notice describes the action the agency proposed or refused. 34 CFR 300.503(b)(1)
The reasons, in full
Reasons given out loud shift between meetings; the written version is the one a hearing officer reads.
The notice explains why the agency proposed or refused that action. 34 CFR 300.503(b)(2)
The data behind it
Without the reports the team leaned on, you are arguing about a conclusion whose evidence you have never read.
The notice describes each evaluation, record or report used as a basis. 34 CFR 300.503(b)(3)
The options set aside
The alternative the team almost chose is usually the one you would have asked for yourself.
The notice covers other options considered and why they were rejected. 34 CFR 300.503(b)(6)
The letter
Replace everything in brackets. The rest sends as it stands.
- To
- Whoever signed the paperwork, and the district office
- Subject
- Request for prior written notice about [Decision], dated [Date] — [Child’s name]
Dear [Special education director], On [Date] the district [describe what was decided — for example, declined the evaluation I asked for, or lowered the speech minutes on my child’s IEP]. I am requesting prior written notice of that decision for [Child’s full name] at [School name]. Please include: • what the district decided, in the district’s own words • why it decided that • each assessment, record or report the decision rested on • the other options the team weighed, and why each was set aside If part of this was settled at the meeting on [Meeting date], please say which part. I would rather read the reasoning than repeat the conversation, and I will wait for it before I ask for anything further. Respectfully, [Your name], parent [Email] [Phone] Dated [Today’s date]
If no answer comes back
Notice follows the decision, so start counting on the day the district told you its answer.
- Reply to the person who gave you the answer and repeat the request.
- Copy the special education office, and attach the meeting invitation that names the date.
- File the state complaint on the decision itself, and note the missing notice.
A no owes you prior written notice: the decision, the reason for it, and the records behind it (34 CFR 300.503).
This is a template, not legal advice: it does not replace your state’s procedures, or advice from someone qualified to read your file.
Have the pages you are writing about read back to you, free.
The review reads every page you upload, names the wording that is vague or missing, and gives you its page number.
Review my IEP — freeFree, no card. It reads your pages and contacts no one.
Where this comes from
- Prior notice by the public agency (34 CFR 300.503)The seven items listed.
- State complaint procedures (34 CFR 300.153)Where the notice gets used.
- Complaint time limit (34 CFR 300.152)The count after filing.
- Prior written notice (34 CFR 300.503)What a no owes you.
Response deadlines are set state by state, and the state pages carry each number with its rule.