DBE 120 Form, DBE 121, and DBE 126: What Each Form Does and Who Fills It Out

Most South African parents know that the SIAS process involves forms — but the specific form numbers, what triggers each one, and who is responsible for completing them are rarely explained. The result is that parents arrive at SBST meetings or district offices without knowing which documents should already exist, which ones they can ask to receive copies of, and which ones the school is supposed to have filed months ago.

The forms that matter most at the district escalation stage — Forms DBE 120, DBE 121, and DBE 126 — are the ones parents most often never see, even though they directly govern what support their child receives.

The Four SNA Forms: Where DBE 120 Fits

Before getting to the DBE-numbered forms, it helps to understand where they sit in the broader SIAS sequence.

The SIAS policy structures its process around three Support Needs Assessment forms:

• SNA 1 — completed by the class teacher with parental input when a learning barrier is first identified. Documents the specific barriers, the teacher's initial classroom interventions, and the learner's strengths and needs.
• SNA 2 — completed by the School-Based Support Team (SBST). Contains the Individual Support Plan (ISP) — the formal accommodation and support strategy the school commits to implementing. Also records whether the school has the capacity to support the learner without district-level intervention.
• SNA 3 — initiated by the District-Based Support Team (DBST) when the case has been formally escalated from the school.

The transition from SNA 2 to SNA 3 — from school-level to district-level — is triggered by one specific form.

DBE 120: The Referral Form That Opens the District Process

Form DBE 120 is the official referral document the SBST completes when it determines that the school cannot adequately support a learner with the resources available to it. Completing DBE 120 is the formal request for DBST intervention.

The form includes:

• A summary of all SNA 1 and SNA 2 documentation to date
• The school's assessment of which level of support intensity the learner requires (levels 3 to 5 in the SIAS framework correspond to increasing levels of specialist and external support)
• Details of the interventions already attempted at school level
• The school's formal request for district assessment, specialist input, or placement consideration

Who fills it out: The SBST, specifically the case manager (usually the head of department or deputy principal coordinating the support process). Parents do not complete DBE 120 — but they must be informed that it has been submitted and should request a copy.

What parents should know: If your child's SBST meeting concluded that the school cannot cope and that the matter should go to the DBST, DBE 120 should have been completed at that point. If you have never seen a copy and your child is supposedly "on the DBST waiting list," ask the school to show you the completed DBE 120 with the date it was submitted to the district. A verbal referral is not a referral. Only a completed and submitted DBE 120 formally opens the DBST queue.

DBE 121 and DBE 122: What the DBST Sends Back

Once the DBST receives DBE 120 and conducts its specialist evaluation, it produces two response documents:

Form DBE 121 — Plan of Action in relation to the learner: This documents the DBST's findings about the individual child and sets out the recommended interventions, accommodations, or placements. If the DBST recommends placement in a Full-Service School or a specialized special school resource centre, that recommendation appears here. DBE 121 is the official output of the DBST assessment process.

Form DBE 122 — Plan of Action in relation to the school: This addresses what the school itself needs to do or receive to support the learner and others with similar barriers. If the school lacks the structural capacity to implement the DBST's recommendations — for example, if a learner requires a dedicated facilitation aide or specialized assistive technology — DBE 122 records the school-resource request for DBST consideration. If a school says it cannot implement the recommendations because it lacks resources, ask whether the DBE 122 outcome has recorded the resource or support request.

Who fills them out: The DBST. Schools and parents receive copies.

DBE 126: The Health and Disability Assessment Form

Form DBE 126 is different in nature from the SNA forms and the DBE 120 series. It is not an administrative referral or action plan — it is a clinical assessment document.

DBE 126 is a standardized Health and Disability Assessment Form for medical or health conditions. It is completed by a medical doctor or specialist and captures the relevant findings from a formal health or disability assessment in the format used by the DBE.

When it is required:

• For matric examination concession applications where the relevant board requests medical or health evidence, alongside the board's application and portfolio of evidence
• When a DBST specialist assessment is conducted using district resources, the findings may be recorded on or alongside DBE 126
• When a private assessment is being submitted to the SBST or DBST for formal incorporation into the SIAS process

Who fills it out: A medical doctor or specialist — not the teacher, school administrator, or parent. If a school asks a parent to complete the health and disability assessment itself, ask the school or district which qualified health professional should complete it.

What parents should know about private assessments and DBE 126: If you have commissioned a private psycho-educational assessment, ask the relevant school or district whether DBE 126 is needed as part of the report package. Some practitioners provide a comprehensive clinical report in their own format; that report may not be sufficient for a medical-evidence component if the relevant board requires DBE 126.

How to Check Whether These Forms Have Been Filed

Parents often cannot obtain copies of these forms easily. Ask the school or district for the records relating to your child's educational assessment and support, and ask what process it uses for releasing them.

A practical approach:

1. At any SBST meeting, ask the school to confirm in writing which SNA forms have been completed and the dates they were submitted. Request copies. If the SBST has made a DBST referral, ask to see the completed DBE 120 and the date it was sent to the district office.

2. If your child is waiting for the DBST and the school cannot confirm the submission, contact the district office directly and ask for confirmation that DBE 120 was received and that your child is registered on the DBST queue. Get the name of the official you speak to and the date.

3. If the DBST has already assessed your child, ask for copies of DBE 121 and DBE 122 from both the school and the district if you have not received them.

4. If you are approaching matric and need DBE 126 for concessions, discuss this explicitly with your private practitioner before the assessment. Confirm they will produce the form in the DBE-required format, not just a general clinical report.

The reason these forms matter beyond administrative tidiness is that they constitute an important record of your child's support pathway. If DBE 120 was never filed, ask the school to correct the missing referral record rather than relying on a verbal assurance. If DBE 121 was never produced, there is no formally documented plan of action from the district to point to when following up on its recommendations.

If you are navigating any part of this process and need a step-by-step guide to requesting school and district action — including what to say in writing when forms have not been filed and how to build a concession-ready evidence portfolio — the complete toolkit is at /za-assessment/.

When DBE 120 Gets Lost

One of the most common frustrations reported by South African parents is the "missing referral" — the SBST claimed to have submitted DBE 120, the district has no record of it, and the child falls off the queue entirely. This is not unusual in high-volume districts where administrative systems are under strain.

If this happens:

• Request written confirmation from the school of the date DBE 120 was submitted and how it was transmitted (hand-delivered, email, courier)
• Contact the district inclusive education unit directly — not just the district office's general line — with the details
• If there is no record and no satisfactory response, escalate to the provincial inclusive education directorate

The provincial directorates have oversight responsibility for district compliance with SIAS procedures. A written complaint to the provincial level documenting that a formally submitted DBE 120 has been lost or ignored is significantly more effective than repeated calls to a district office.

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