Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X complaint about the Council’s failure to provide alternative education.

The complaint

1. Mrs X says the Council failed to provide Y with a suitable education from November 2023 onwards.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X began home educating Y in the Autumn of 2013. She provided the Council with yearly education reports. In November 2023 she says she told the Council that she wanted to immediately stop home educating. She says the Council then failed to provide any education. She complained to the Council in early February 2024.
6. The notice Mrs X gave in November 2023 said:

“ please also accept this email as giving official notice today of carrying out Elective Home Education and pass to the appropriate team”.

7. The Council in reply to her complaint says it had read her notice as a notice that she was home educating not that she was ending home educating. It says it is clear on its website how to notify the Council when a family wish to stop home educating. There is a link on the website to a form to complete. The Council’s reply invited Mrs X to complete the correct form and give notification.

Analysis

8. Councils must arrange suitable education at school or elsewhere for pupils who are out of school because of exclusion, illness or for other reasons, if they would not receive suitable education without such arrangements. (Education Act 1996, section 19). We refer to this as section 19 or alternative education provision.
9. We are unlikely to say the Council failed to provide s19 alternative provision as it is not clear enough from Mrs X’s intended notice that she was terminating the home education.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is unlikely we could find fault causing the direct injustice Mrs X alleges.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman