IEP Services · Supports & Therapies

Related Services in an IEP: What Schools Must Provide and How to Get Them

Related services are the therapies and support services that allow a child with a disability to benefit from special education. They’re not extras, they’re legally required when the IEP team determines a child needs them.

What Are Related Services?

Under IDEA, related services are developmental, corrective, and other supportive services required to help a child with a disability benefit from special education. The law specifically lists:

• Speech-language pathology and audiology services
• Interpreting services
• Psychological services
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Recreation (including therapeutic recreation)
• Early identification and assessment
• Counseling services (including rehabilitation counseling)
• Orientation and mobility services
• Medical services (for diagnostic and evaluation purposes only)
• School health and school nurse services
• Social work services
• Parent counseling and training
• Transportation

This list isn’t exhaustive, courts have recognized other services as related services when they meet the standard of being necessary for the child to benefit from special education.

The Standard for Required Related Services

A related service must be included in the IEP when the IEP team determines that the student requires it to benefit from special education. The threshold is not “would benefit from” or “might help”, it’s requires. But in practice, the question of what a child requires is often a matter of judgment, and that judgment is made by an IEP team that includes the school’s staff, which means parent advocacy and outside data matter.

How to Get Related Services Added to an IEP

The most common way related services get added is through evaluation. If you believe your child needs a related service that isn’t in their IEP:

1. Request an evaluation in the relevant area in writing. For speech therapy concerns: request a speech-language evaluation. For fine motor/handwriting: request an occupational therapy evaluation. For mobility or physical concerns: request a physical therapy evaluation.
2. Provide outside documentation. If your child is already receiving the service privately, from a private speech therapist, for example, share those therapy records with the school and request that the school evaluation consider them.
3. Document educational impact. Schools are more likely to agree to related services when there’s clear documentation of how the area of need is affecting the child’s ability to access their education. A child whose illegible handwriting is preventing them from producing written work has an educationally relevant need for OT.
4. Push back on the frequency. Even when the school agrees a service is needed, they may propose minimal frequency, 15 minutes once a month, for example, that won’t produce meaningful progress. Ask for the research basis for the proposed frequency and provide your own data or outside therapist recommendations.

The Frequency and Intensity Problem

Getting a related service into an IEP is often only half the battle. Schools frequently propose insufficient frequency, particularly for speech and occupational therapy. Be specific about what adequate services look like. “Speech-language therapy, 2 times per week, 30 minutes individual” is a real service. “Speech services as needed” is not a meaningful commitment.

Your child’s private therapist, if they have one, can be a powerful voice here. A private SLP recommendation for twice-weekly individual therapy, submitted in writing before an IEP meeting, is much harder for a school to ignore than a parent’s verbal request.

Common Related Service Pushback, and Responses