Summary: Miss X complained that the Council failed to arrange suitable alternative education for her son, B, after his school closed. She said this caused B to miss out on education for a significant period which affected his wellbeing and caused her uncertainty and inconvenience. We found the Council at fault for failing to secure an alternative school place or other educational provision for B for a prolonged period. The Council has apologised and made a symbolic payment to Miss X in acknowledgement of the injustice caused. It has also made improvements to its service. We consider these to be suitable remedies.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained that Medway Council (the Council) failed to arrange suitable alternative education for her son, B, after his school closed. She said this caused B to miss out on education for a significant period which affected his wellbeing and has prevented him from reaching his potential. It has also caused Miss X inconvenience and uncertainty.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. Service failure can happen when an organisation fails to provide a service as it should have done because of circumstances outside its control. We do not need to show any blame, intent, flawed policy or process, or bad faith by an organisation to say service failure (fault) has occurred. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1), as amended)
3. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered evidence provided by Miss X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
5. Miss X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.
6. 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 found

Section 19 duty

7. Section 19 of the Education Act 1996 says that the council must arrange suitable alternative educational provision when it finds that a child is unable to attend school because of a permanent exclusion, an illness, or for any other reason which makes the school inaccessible to the child. The alternative educational provision must be suitable to the child’s age, ability and aptitude, and any special educational needs they have.
8. We publish good practice guidance on how we expect councils to fulfil their responsibilities to identify and arrange alternative educational provision: Supporting children out of school (October 2025)

Fair Access Protocols

9. Each local authority must have a Fair Access Protocol (FAP) to ensure that unplaced and vulnerable children, and those who are having difficulty in securing a school place in-year, are allocated a school place as quickly as possible.
10. The Schools Admissions Code 2021 sets out local authority requirements in relation to Fair Access Protocols (paragraphs 3.14 – 3.22). The Department for Education also provides guidance in ‘Fair Access Protocols: Guidance for school leaders, admission authorities and local authorities’ (July 2021) School admissions code - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

What happened

11. B attended a school which closed in July 2024. Before the closure, the Council considered options for B's future education, including a place at an alternative provision. However, B did not receive a new school placement when the school closed. The Council said it planned to present his case to a FAP meeting in autumn 2024 but this did not happen. B therefore remained out of school.
12. During the 2024/25 academic year, the Council did not secure a school place for B and did not put alternative educational provision in place. Miss X said she had been told the Council would find another school and later provide online learning, but she received no further updates. In summer 2025, after B had been out of education for about a year, Miss X made a complaint to the Council.
13. At stage one of its complaints procedure the Council accepted it had failed to arrange suitable provision for B following the school closure. It apologised and said it would arrange tuition and take B's case to the next FAP meeting. After Miss X escalated her complaint, the Council issued its stage two response. It again accepted failures in the way it had managed B's transition following the school closure. It offered a symbolic payment to Miss X, said it would support B's return to education, and said it would review its procedures.
14. The Council arranged one-to-one tuition for B from the start of the 2025/26 academic year. The Council then presented B's case to a FAP meeting in autumn 2025. Following the meeting, the Council offered B a school place. Miss X raised concerns about the suitability of the placement, including B's long absence from education and the distance from home. The Council advised it would work with the school to support B's reintegration and explore any further support available.
15. Miss X remained concerned the proposed placement would not meet B's needs. She decided not to accept the school place and subsequently chose to educate B at home.

Analysis

16. The Council had a duty to ensure B received suitable education once his school closed in July 2024. The evidence shows the Council considered possible options for B before the closure, including FAP referral, alternative provision and online learning. However, it did not secure any of those arrangements. B was not presented to FAP as intended in autumn 2024 and the Council did not put any interim education in place. As a result, B remained without educational provision for the whole of the 2024/25 school year.
17. The Council accepted during its own complaints process that it failed to arrange suitable education for B following the school closure. It acknowledged the transition was not managed properly and that B missed a significant period of education.
18. This was fault. Had the Council acted properly, B would have either had a new school place or alternative educational provision much sooner. Instead, he missed an entire academic year of education in 2024/25. The loss of education caused a significant injustice to B. It also caused Miss X avoidable uncertainty and frustration.
19. Following Miss X's complaint, in September 2025, the Council arranged one-to-one tuition for B. The Council then secured a school place for B through the FAP process. Miss X did not consider the placement suitable and chose to educate B at home. While I understand Miss X's reasons for that decision, I have not seen evidence that the Council failed to take steps to secure education for B from September 2025 onwards.
20. In its stage two complaint response, the Council apologised and acknowledged the impact of its failings on both B and Miss X. The Council offered Miss X a payment of £3,040 in recognition of the loss of education. Miss X said this amount is not sufficient to acknowledge the significant injustice she and B have suffered. However, this amount falls within the range recommended in our guidance on remedies for loss of educational provision and I find it to be a suitable remedy under the circumstances.
21. The Council also told us that, following Miss X’s complaint, it reviewed its procedures for finding new school places and alternative provision for pupils when a school closes. I am satisfied the Council has taken action to reduce the risk of a similar failure occurring in future and so do not recommend any further service improvements at this time.

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Decision

22. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has already completed actions to remedy the injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman