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Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council (05C03466)

School transport                           Maladministration causing injustice

25 May 2006

‘Ms Ford’ and ‘Ms Smith’ (not their real names for legal reasons) complained that the Council unreasonably withdrew free school transport from their son, who is severely autistic with poor motor skills and a profound learning disability. Also that, when his transport to school was reinstated, the Council, having first met their legal fees on a previous occasion, then refused to do so a second time.

The Ombudsman found that, when the Council first withdrew the free school transport for the complainants’ son, it was only reinstated after the threat of legal proceedings by the complainants. On that occasion the Council, rightly in the Ombudsman’s view, decided to meet the complainants’ legal costs.

The Council then introduced a new policy and as a result the complainants’ son’s transport was withdrawn again. When their solicitor intervened again, the Council accepted that it had not given adequate reasons and offered an additional appeal which led to the reinstatement of the free transport. However, the complainants were left with substantial legal costs which the Council refused on this occasion to meet.

It is the Ombudsman’s view that the Council would not have reinstated the child’s free school transport without the threat of court action by the complainants, and further that it was reasonable for them to have employed a solicitor to make that threat.

The Ombudsman decided that, having met the complainants’ legal fees on the first occasion, the Council had no good reason to refuse to meet those costs on the second occasion. Further, the Ombudsman found that the withdrawal of transport twice caused considerable problems for the complainants’ family.

The Ombudsman recommends that the Council should reimburse the complainants’ full legal fees and pay them compensation of £1,000 to recognise their anxiety and the time and trouble they have had to take in pursuing their complaint. Further, the Ombudsman recommends that the Council should consider reinstating transport for parents in the same position as the complainants and their son.

Date Published: 03/02/09