Summary: the Council failed to deal properly with Mrs X’s request for transport assistance for her son and her appeal. The Ombudsman finds there was fault by the Council due to delays and poor communication. The Council has now agreed transport assistance from 2018. The Council has agreed also agreed our recommendation that it should also pay Mrs X £150 due to its delays and putting her to time and trouble.

The complaint

1. The complainant whom I shall refer to as Mrs X complains the Council has unfairly refused transport assistance for her son Y, and has delayed dealing with her application, appeal and complaints about the matter. She says she was not invited to attend the appeal hearing.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have discussed the complaint with the complainant and considered the complaint and the copy correspondence provided by the complainant. I have made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided. I have also considered Mrs X’s comments on my draft decision.

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What I found

5. In May 2018 Mrs X applied to the Council for school transport for her son Y, because she said he could not manage the journey to school due to his disability. The Council rejected Mrs X’s application because it said there were no exceptional reasons why Mrs X could not accompany him.
6. Mrs X pursued her appeal through the Council’s two stage process. The Council rejected the appeal at stage one in October 2018. The Council’s decision letter simply said her reasons did not warrant a change in the original decision. However, the Council notes of its decision making show that it considered Mrs X should apply to the local transport authority for a concessionary bus pass. However, it did not state this in its decision letter.
7. When Mrs X appealed at stage two in December the Council says that due to an administrative error it filed the appeal incorrectly and did not present the appeal to the subcommittee in January 2019.
8. Mrs X had complained about the delays to the Council on 1 March 2019, but there was delay by the Council in responding to her complaint. The Council replied on 29 April 2019. It apologised for the delay and error due to misfiling the appeal. It said that it would consider her appeal urgently.
9. It was not until May 2019 that the subcommittee considered the appeal. Mrs X was not invited to attend the appeal hearing. The subcommittee rejected her appeal. The decision letter stated that it considered Mrs X’s circumstances did not justify a departure from the general policy as there were no exceptional circumstances why she could not accompany Y to school.
10. In September 2019, after Mrs X had complained to the Ombudsman, the Council reviewed the case and decided it should provide transport. The Council provided a free bus pass for Y, and says it will reimburse Mrs X for travel costs for 2018/19.

Analysis

11. The Council rejected Mrs X’s appeal at stage one of its procedure. In its response to my enquiries the Council has agreed the response should have explained that Mr and Mrs X should apply for a concessionary pass before making an application for a free bus pass from the Council. I consider this was fault. When Mrs X did apply for a bus pass through the transport authority and this was rejected, the Council agreed it should provide a free bus pass for Y. The Council has also agreed to reimburse Mrs X for 2018/19 travel costs.
12. The Council accepts that there was delay on its part in responding to Mrs X’s complaint of 1 March 2019. This was fault.
13. The Council agrees that there was avoidable delay in dealing with Mrs X’s stage two appeal received on 20 December 2018, which was not considered until May 2019. This was fault. The Council says it did not apologise at the time for the delay, but has done so now. The Council also says it has
• reviewed all applications to ensure that the process is followed correctly
• advised relevant members of staff about the process and will also provide training
• revised its appeal process to include inviting appellants to the appeal hearing at stage two.

Agreed action

14. I consider that the Council’s provision of a bus pass and refund for Mrs X’s costs as well its apology has addressed the main faults that were identified. It has also taken steps to improve its procedure. The stage two appeal hearing now accords with the government’s Home to School Transport Guidance 2014, which refers to inviting verbal evidence from the appellants at the hearing.
15. I recommended that the Council should also pay Mrs X £150 in view of the delays she has experienced and her time and trouble in making the complaint. The Council has agreed. The Council should make payment within 1 month of my decision.

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Final decision

16. The Council has agreed an appropriate remedy for the fault identified so I have completed my investigation and closed the complaint.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman