Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about a school’s role in issuing a Fixed Penalty Notice for school non-attendance. The law prevents us from investigating complaints about the internal management of schools. For the rest, there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision not to consider Miss X’s resulting complaint, and further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains a school wrongly issued a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) for school non-attendance, and about the Council’s decision not to consider her resulting complaint.
2. Miss X says she was treated differently than other families.
3. Miss X wants the school to explain its decision, and for the FPN to be cancelled.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. We cannot investigate most complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(2), as amended)
6. 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, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered information provided by Miss X and the Council.
8. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

9. We cannot consider the actions of a school in declining to authorise absence or in issuing an FPN. The law prevents us from investigating complaints about the internal management of schools.
10. A person who receives an FPN may either pay the FPN or wait for the Council to pursue the matter in court. Miss X paid the FPN to avoid possible court proceedings.
11. Miss X could have withheld payment, waited for the Council to start court proceedings and then raised a defence against the FPN in court.
12. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint that the Council decided not to consider her complaint about the FPN. There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision to justify an investigation, and further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Final decision

13. We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint because the law prevents us from investigating complaints about the internal management of schools. For the rest, there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision not to consider Miss X’s complaint about the matter, and further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman