Special Education Program Procedural Manual
Procedural Safeguards Notice
The Procedural Safeguards Notice is the list of parent rights and responsibilities under IDEA 2004. The Procedural Safeguards Notice outlines rights and safeguards to be followed according to state and federal regulations in providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to eligible students. The December 2008 version is more user-friendly with many areas clarified. All staff must read the entire document so that they fully understand the parents' rights and responsibilities.
The LEA is obligated to give a copy of the Procedural Safeguards Notice one time per year. Several exceptions to this requirement exist and in all of these cases a copy of the Procedural Safeguards Notice must be given. These include:
- Notice of disciplinary change of placement
- Initial referral or parent request for evaluation
- Parent request
- First occurrence of filing for a due process hearing
The Procedural Safeguards Letter needs to accompany the Procedural Safeguards Notice. It is good practice to utilize certified mail when sending the Procedural Safeguards Notice to all parents. Under the PARC Consent Agreement, when a Procedural Safeguard Notice is distributed via mail to parents of children who have been diagnosed with, or who are thought to have mental retardation, it must be issued by certified mail.
Procedures for Issuing the Procedural Safeguards Notice
- At the beginning of each school year (by September 30th) complete a Procedural Safeguards Letter for each student on your roster.
- Make a copy of the Procedural Safeguards Letter and place it in the student's confidential file folder as documentation that the letter and notice were sent.
- Send a copy of the Procedural Safeguards Letter and the Procedural Safeguards Notice to each parent/guardian. If the student has mental retardation, the documents must be sent by certified mail.
- It is not necessary to issue another Procedural Safeguards Letter and Procedural Safeguards Notice unless one of the exceptions listed above occurs.
- For any student who enters the program after the school year has begun, complete the Procedural Safeguards Letter, make a copy for the file and send it and the Procedural Safeguards Notice to the parent/guardian.
- Those Speech and Language Therapists who are responsible for issuing the Permission to Evaluate must remember to send the Procedural Safeguards Letter and Procedural Safeguards Notice with the permission form.
