IEP Prior Written Notice: What Must Be Included
A compliant Prior Written Notice (PWN) must include 4 things: the action the school proposes or refuses, the reason for that action, a description of other options considered and why they were rejected, and a copy of or reference to procedural safeguards. Missing any one of these makes the notice non-compliant under IDEA.
Prior Written Notice is one of the most frequently under-documented procedural requirements in special education — not because teams don't understand it, but because it's easy to write a notice that only covers 2 or 3 of the 4 required elements.
1. The proposed or refused action
State specifically what the school is proposing to do (or refusing to do) — a specific change to placement, services, evaluation, or identification. Vague language like "changes to services" isn't enough; the notice should describe the actual proposed change clearly enough that a parent understands exactly what's being decided.
2. The reason for the action
Explain why the school is proposing or refusing this action, tied to actual evaluation data or observed evidence — not just "the team decided." This is where the connection back to the PLAAFP and evaluation data matters again: the reason given in the PWN should be traceable to something documented elsewhere in the student's record.
3. Other options considered
Describe what other options the team considered and why they were rejected. This step gets skipped constantly, but it's explicitly required — a PWN that only explains what was chosen, without addressing what else was on the table, is incomplete even if everything else is well documented.
4. Procedural safeguards
The notice must inform parents of their procedural rights — either including a copy of the procedural safeguards notice or clearly stating where to obtain one, along with information on how to access it, including translation or interpretation resources if needed.
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