Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about delays in the Council arranging alternative educational provision for her son after his school permanently excluded him. The Council has upheld the complaint and provided a suitable remedy for Miss X’s injustice. There are no wider public interest issues to justify our investigation.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained about delays in the Council arranging alternative educational provision for her son (Y) after his school permanently excluded him.
2. Miss X said this caused an impact to Y’s education and mental health.

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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 provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Miss X complained about delays in the Council arranging alternative educational provision for Y after his school permanently excluded him in September 2024. Miss X said this has affected Y’s future and negatively impacted on his mental health.
7. I note 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.
8. In its complaint response, the Council detailed efforts it made to arrange a school place for Y. However, for various reasons, such as schools not having capacity, it was unsuccessful in those efforts until June 2025 when it found a place for Y to attend. There is evidence of a service failure here.
9. Service failure can happen when an organisation fails to provide a service as it should have done because of circumstances outside its control.
10. The Council acknowledged the delays and the impact this caused to Miss X and Y by providing apologies and a financial remedy of £5710. This was to remedy the injustice caused by Y’s loss of education between September 2024 – June 2025 and the distress caused.
11. The financial remedy provided by the Council appears appropriate and is in line with our guidance on remedies.
12. Additionally, I also note evidence the Council has shared with us, about how it is improving internal processes for putting alternative educational provision in place in a timely manner. The Council took these actions during the time of Miss X’s involvement with it. With that in mind, I am satisfied there are no service improvements or recommendations now needed, in response to this complaint, which are not already being implemented.
13. In considering all available information, I consider the Council’s actions here to be appropriate, and given the work the Council is already doing, there are no wider public interest issues to justify the Ombudsman carrying out a full investigation. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the Council has upheld the complaint and provided a suitable remedy for injustice and there are no wider public interest issues to justify our investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman