Summary: Ms X complained the Council failed to ensure her son (Y) received a suitable and full-time education during a four-month period in 2024. The Council agreed it had been at fault. It apologised and offered a remedy to Ms X to acknowledge the distress she experienced and refunded her tuition costs. We found the Council’s remedy to Ms X was appropriate to remedy the injustice its faults caused.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained on behalf of her son (Y) about the Council’s handling of his education. She said it failed to ensure Y received a suitable full-time education when he would otherwise not receive one, and it communicated poorly.
2. Ms X said, as a result, Y had a loss of education, and she experienced distress and had costs to provide him with some education. She said the Council’s apology and remedy offer did not fully acknowledge the injustice it caused.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
6. We cannot investigate most complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(2), as amended)
7. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(1), as amended)
8. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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What I have and have not investigated

9. Ms X’s complaint relates to events which occurred from March to July 2024 regarding Y’s education. She brought her complaint to our attention in June 2025, which was more than 12 months after the events complained about. Her complaint is therefore slightly late.
10. However, I have found it appropriate to consider the complaint as the delay to bring it to our attention was limited and the Council’s complaints process was not finalised until November 2024.
11. I have not investigated some point of Ms X’s complaint as these relate to what happened in the school, and should be addressed by the school’s complaints process. This includes Y’s exclusion, free school meals, and how the school included Y in rewards and events.

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How I considered this complaint

12. I considered evidence provided by Ms X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
13. Ms X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and guidance

Alternative provision

14. 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. The provision generally should be full-time unless it is not in the child’s interests. (Education Act 1996, section 19). We refer to this as section 19 or alternative education provision.
15. This applies to all children of compulsory school age living in the local council area, whether or not they are on the roll of a school. (Statutory guidance ‘Alternative Provision’ January 2013)
16. The courts have considered the circumstances where the section 19 duty applies. Caselaw has established that a council will have a duty to provide alternative education under section 19 if there is no suitable education available to the child which is “reasonably practicable” for the child to access. The “acid test” is whether educational provision the council has offered is “available and accessible to the child”. (R (on the application of DS) v Wolverhampton City Council 2017)
17. The education provided by the council must be full-time unless the council determines that full-time education would not be in the child’s best interests for reasons of the child’s physical or mental health. (Education Act 1996, section 3A and 3AA)
18. The law does not define full-time education but children with health needs should have provision which is equivalent to the education they would receive in school. If they receive one-to-one tuition, for example, the hours of face-to-face provision could be fewer as the provision is more concentrated. (Statutory guidance, ‘Ensuring a good education for children who cannot attend school because of health needs’)
19. We have issued guidance on how we expect councils to fulfil their responsibilities to provide education for children who, for whatever reason, do not attend school full-time. Out of school, out of sight? updated August 2023
20. We made six recommendations. Councils should:

• consider the individual circumstances of each case and be aware that a council may need to act whatever the reason for absence (except for minor issues that schools deal with on a day-to-day basis) – even when a child is on a school roll;
• consult all the professionals involved in a child's education and welfare, taking account of the evidence when making decisions;
• choose (based on all the evidence) whether to require attendance at school or provide the child with suitable alternative provision:
• keep all cases of part-time education under review with a view to increasing it if a child’s capacity to learn increases:
• work with parents and schools to draw up plans to reintegrate children to mainstream education as soon as possible, reviewing and amending plans as necessary:
• put the chosen action into practice without delay to ensure the child is back in education as soon as possible.

21. Where councils arrange for schools or other bodies to carry out their functions on their behalf, the council remains responsible. Therefore councils should retain oversight and control to ensure their duties are properly fulfilled.

What happened

22. Ms X’s son (Y) was on roll with a school in the 2023/24 academic year, which was a key year in Y’s education.
23. In March 2024 Y was permanently excluded by his school. Ms X met with the school. Online provision or another school within the same group was discussed.
24. The following day the school rescinded Y’s exclusion, but it refused to allow him to attend school. Instead, it offered some alternative provision at another school or online tuition in his home.
25. Ms X informed the Council about the issues with the school. It told her the school should reintegrate Y back into school as he was not suspended or excluded. It explained any offsite interventions should be purposeful to change and to moderate behaviour. It explained she could complain to the school.
26. Ms X attempted to discuss her concerns with the school, but did not get a response. She asked the Council to get involved due to the urgency, and the lost education Y had already had. She also said online provision from the school had not yet started, but Y had completed some work set by the school.
27. The Council suggested Ms X discussed her concerns with the school and informed her about the independent Information, Advice & Support Service.
28. In late March 2024, Y started receiving online lessons arranged by his school. This was around 12 hours per week. Y was allowed to attend its alternative provision at a different site.
29. A month later, Ms X again shared her concerns about Y’s education from his school with the Council. She said:
• there had been a delay in Y receiving educational provision, including technical issues around online learning;
• she had concerns about the school’s alternative provision offer, which was being suggested to be indefinite;
• Y had attended the alternative provision site but there were issues, delays in collecting him, and breaks which limited the education he received;
• she had discussed issues with the school, and the possibility of increased tuition and catch up was considered. She had asked for this to be in person, as Y struggled with the online learning; and
• it did not provide Y with school dinners or free school meals.
30. Two weeks later, Ms X chased the Council for a response. She explained the exam period had now started for Y. However, the school had excluded him from a warm-up session.
31. The Council said Ms X could complain to the school. She raised her concerns with the school, but again asked the Council to get involved due to the urgency.
32. In June 2024 Y’s school ended his education. He was allowed to sit his exams but should leave afterwards. Ms X informed the Council, which asked what provision Y was receiving and when his last exam would be.
33. Ms X told the Council Y was initially receiving 12 hours online provision per week, but she was not satisfied with the standard. This changed in May 2024 and little or no education was provided, and only a few online lessons. The school also stopped the in-person provision in June 2024. His last exam was in mid-June 2024.

Ms X’s complaint

34. In July 2024 Ms X complained to the Council about its handling of her concerns regarding Y’s education. She said it had failed to:
• arrange a suitable full-time education for Y when his school was not fulfilling its duty, or intervene to ensure this was provided when his exclusion was rescinded; and
• respond to some of her communication since April 2024.
35. Ms X also explained the school had not yet responded to her complaint, and she had paid for tuition for Y in two subjects to provide him with education before his exams.
36. In response the Council:
• explained it had limited powers to direct the school to act, but it had worked with the school to find a solution and Y did not have an exclusion on his record. It had also provided information to Ms X about raising her concerns with the school, and this resulted in Y accessing online tuition and some provision at a different school site;
• accepted the education Y had received was not as suitable or full time as would be expected. It acknowledged Ms X had paid for some tuition for Y, and offered to refund the costs; and
• found it had responded to most of Ms X’s communication, but accepted it had not responded to all, or acted as quickly as it should have on some occasions. It offered Ms X a symbolic payment of £250 to acknowledge the distress and time and trouble she experienced.
37. Ms X subsequently met with the school. It told her the Council had in March 2024 asked it to rescind the exclusion, and the Council would provide alternative provision until the end of the academic year. However, two weeks later the school was then told it should provide an education.
38. Ms X asked the Council to clarify this. She also said she had costs due to Y not receiving free school meals at the time and escalated her complaint.
39. In its final response, the Council reiterated its initial complaint response. It also explained it had discussed Y and other children with the school in March 2024. It confirmed it had not suggested alternative provision would be provided by the Council. It had been clear the school should provide this and was arranging this at the time. However, the school had confused another child with Y, which caused Mrs X’s confusion. It acknowledged this caused confusion. It had attempted to get information about the free school meals from the school, but it did not receive a response. Ms X should address this with the school.
40. The Council said it had taken steps as a result of Ms X’s complaint to ensure suitable education and clear communication without delays is in place, if similar circumstances were to occur in future.
41. Ms X asked the Ombudsman to consider her complaint.

Analysis and findings

42. The Council has accepted some fault in how it handled Ms X’s concerns and Y’s education from March 2024 to the end of the academic year. I have considered the Council’s handling of her concerns, and the remedy it provided to acknowledge the impact its faults caused.
43. I agree with the Council’s overall findings. This was:
• Y had an education offer available to him at the school’s off-site placement and online provision. However, Ms X declined, and the education Y received was not as suitable and full-time as what would be expected from April 2024. This was when the school had had the opportunity to put in place provision;
• it failed to act and respond in a timely manner when Ms X continued to raise her concerns about the provision available to Y and she explained why this was not suitable or full-time provision. This included her concerns about the revision support available to Y during the exam period; and
• Ms X experienced confusion as to whether it was the school or the Council which would arrange for alternative educational provision for Y. However, this was due to a misunderstanding by the school relating to discussions around Y and other children. It was not the Council which caused the confusion as it had been clear the school should provide provision for Y. The Council clarified this to Ms X when it became aware.
44. The Council apologised to Ms X, refunded the cost of the tuition she had arranged, and paid a distress payment of £250 to acknowledge the impact its fault had. I found the Council’s apology and remedy to Ms X was appropriate. In reaching my view I was conscious:
• Y attended some parts of the provision offered and available to him. The Council had not found the offer was unsuitable;
• the Council informed the school of its duties, chased for updates, and were entitled to rely on the school to provide the agreed provision to an appropriate standard. Any further involvement by the Council was challenging due to the limited period of time left before Y’s exams; and
• any actual educational provision was likely to cease when Y finished his last exam in June 2024. Any subsequent provision until the end of the term was celebratory and preparatory for the next stage of the children’s education. The loss of such opportunities was therefore for her school complaint.

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Decision

45. I have completed my investigation with a finding of fault by the Council causing Ms X and Y an injustice. The Council’s apology and remedy was appropriate to address the impact this had on her and Y.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman