Form

Guidance for applying: UT4

Updated 4 December 2023

The Administrative Appeals Chamber is part of the Upper Tribunal. It decides appeals on points of law from decisions of the First-tier Tribunal in cases concerning:

• special educational needs
• education
• health and care plans
• disability discrimination in schools

The Upper Tribunal consists of High Court judges and other specialist judges appointed by the King.

Use form UT4 to apply to the Upper Tribunal for permission to appeal against a decision of a First-tier Tribunal if the First-tier Tribunal has refused you permission to appeal or refused to admit your application. You should also use form UT4 to appeal to the Upper Tribunal if the First-tier Tribunal has granted you permission to appeal. 

You must send form UT4 to the Upper Tribunal office so that it is received no later than one month after the date the First-tier Tribunal sent you notice of the refusal or grant of permission to appeal, or the refusal to admit your application. If you are late, you must explain why in Part H of the form.

Before you apply, you must have applied to the First-tier Tribunal for permission to appeal. You should have received information from the First-tier Tribunal about how and when to do this.

The appellant

Appellant is used to describe a person who is making an appeal, or who is asking for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal. 

You should tick the appropriate box to indicate whether you are applying for permission or appealing as a young person or their alternative person, as the child’s parent or the person with parental responsibility or as the local education authority or responsible body. A young person is a person aged 16 to 25 years who is making an appeal. Where a young person lacks capacity, an alternative person is a person who can appeal for them.

The child or young person

Whoever is completing this form as an appellant should complete Part B giving the information asked for about the child or young person who is the subject of the appeal.

The parents or person with parental responsibility for a child

Where the appeal relates to a child, whoever is completing this form as an appellant should complete Part C giving the information asked for about the child’s parents or persons with parental responsibility. If more than one parent or person with parental responsibility took part in the First-tier Tribunal proceedings, the details of both should be given.

The alternative person acting for a young person

If a young person lacks the capacity to appeal themselves, an alternative person may appeal in the interest of the young person. An alternative person may be a person with a formal role, for example as a Court of Protection deputy, under a power of attorney or they may be the parent of a young person acting in the interests of that young person. If an alternative person is appealing, they should put their details here.

The young person or the parent’s representative

If you are a parent (or the person with parental responsibility), or a young person or a young person’s alternative person and you are applying for permission to appeal or appealing, you do not need to have a representative. You may fill in this form yourself and the Upper Tribunal office will correspond with you. However, it is open to you to be represented by a solicitor or by any other person.

If you have a representative, you should give their details in the boxes provided in Part E. The Upper Tribunal office will then correspond only with your representative although you will always be sent copies of the Upper Tribunal decisions.

The local education authority or responsible body

Whoever is completing this form as appellant should complete Part F giving the  information asked for about the local authority (in a special educational needs or  education, health and care plans case) or about the body responsible for the school or education setting concerned (the responsible body) in a disability discrimination case.

The First-tier Tribunal that decided your case

The place of the First-tier Tribunal hearing, the date of the decision and the number of your case should all be on the tribunal’s written decision.

Reasons for any delay

You must send or deliver form UT4 to the Upper Tribunal office so that it is received no later than one month after the date the First-tier Tribunal sent you notice of the refusal or grant of permission to appeal or of the refusal to admit your application.   

If your application or appeal to the Upper Tribunal is late you must ask for an extension of time and explain the delay in Part H of the form. For the Upper Tribunal to accept your application or appeal you must show a good reason.  

If your application for permission to appeal was not admitted by the First-tier Tribunal because it was late it will only be admitted if the Upper Tribunal considers that it is in the interests of justice to do so. In any event you must always explain the delay.  

The Upper Tribunal may take into account the length of the delay, and other matters such as the amount of money at stake and the potential importance of the case, so you can also mention these as reasons.   

Use the box provided on the form or a separate sheet of paper if necessary. If you 
use a separate piece of paper, put your name and appeal reference number on it and attach it firmly to the form.

Reasons for appealing

You must explain why you think the First-tier Tribunal decision is wrong in law. Examples of mistakes of law are that the tribunal:

• did not apply the correct law or wrongly interpreted the law
• made a procedural error
• had no evidence, or not enough evidence, to support its decision
• did not give adequate reasons (in its written decision or the written statement of its reasons)

These are only examples and the First-tier Tribunal’s decision may be wrong in law for some other reason. You should explain in as much detail as possible why the decision in your particular case is wrong in law. If you have a representative, they will advise you and may complete the form for you. You should not miss the one month time limit for sending in your application form. 

What you have said on form UT4 will be treated as your main submission on the appeal (even if you are now only applying for permission to appeal). You should therefore make sure that you say everything you wish to at this stage. On the other hand, remember that short clear submissions may be more effective than long repetitive ones.   

You may use a separate piece of paper if you wish but put your name and appeal reference number on it and attach it firmly to the form.

Request for an oral hearing

If you are applying to the Upper Tribunal for permission to appeal and you or your representative wish to appear before an Upper Tribunal judge at an oral hearing of your application, fill in the relevant boxes in Part J. 

If you are refused permission to appeal (or given permission on limited grounds or subject to conditions) without an oral hearing and the judge has not certified the whole or part of your application as being totally without merit, you will be given the opportunity to ask (within 14 days) for that decision to be reconsidered at an oral hearing.   

An oral hearing may be a face to face hearing (normally held in London) or be heard remotely (by video-link or telephone). You will be sent further information if the Upper Tribunal judge allows your request for an oral hearing. 

Do not fill in the boxes about an oral hearing if the First-tier Tribunal has given you permission to appeal. In that case, or if you are given permission to appeal by the Upper Tribunal, you will be given an opportunity of asking for an oral hearing of your appeal at a later stage.

Application or appeal to the Upper Tribunal

Even if you have a representative, the applicant or appellant must sign the form personally in Part K. Your signature will be taken as authority for the representative named in Part E to act for you. The only exception to this rule is where the representative is a solicitor. A solicitor is presumed to be acting on instructions and may sign the form on behalf of the appellant.

Where to send the form

You must use the E-Filing service to send form UT4 and the required documents to the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) if you are either:

• legally represented
• applying or appealing on behalf of the local education authority or responsible body

You can find out more about how to use the E-Filing service.

If you are not legally represented, you should use the E-Filing service. If you are unable to, you must email or send form UT4 to:

The Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber)
5th Floor Rolls Building
7 Rolls Buildings
Fetter Lane
London
EC4A 1NL

Email: adminappeals@justice.gov.uk

If you are late, you can still send in your form but you must explain the delay in Part H of the form.

Required documents

You must enclose the following documents with the Form UT3:

• a copy of the written decision issued by the First-tier Tribunal and all the documents the first-tier Tribunal relied on to make their decision
• the letter from the First-tier Tribunal telling you that you have been granted or refused permission to appeal or that your application has not been admitted
• a copy of the funding notice or legal aid certificate

If you do not send these document your appeal may not be admitted or may be delayed, but you must not delay your appeal if you do not have them. You must send the documents as soon as you have them.

Keep these notes in a safe place so that you have a record of the address of the Upper Tribunal office. 

Contact the office if you are not told within a week that the form has been received.