Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint the Council was wrong to refuse her application for home to school transport. It is unlikely we would find fault.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs X, says the Council was wrong to refuse her application for free home to school transport for her child, Z.

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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. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council, which included the appeal papers.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
5. I considered Mrs X’s comments on a draft version of this decision.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X applied to the Council for free home to school transport for her child, Z to start in September 2021 at School Y, which is more than three miles from their home. There are at least three schools closer to their home. The Council refused the application. Mrs X sought a review and then had an appeal with an appeal panel. It also refused her application.
7. The Council says Z is not attending their nearest suitable school. It says there is no evidence closer schools could not meet her educational needs. The appeal panel said the Council should consider giving Z priority of the Council’s vacant seat scheme.
8. Mrs X says Z cannot attend any school other than School Y. She says the closest school has too dangerous a route for Z to take. She says Z has additional medical needs. She says because of these needs the safest option for Z is to go to School Y as there is a bus which is convenient for the family’s logistics and childcare.

Background law and guidance

9. In July 2014, the government issued statutory guidance to local education authorities on home to school travel and transport. (The Education Act 1996 sections 508 and 509, and part 6 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006.) Councils have to follow this guidance unless they have good reasons not to.
10. Councils are required to make travel arrangements and provide free transport for “eligible children” of compulsory school age to attend their “nearest suitable school”. A child is eligible where the nearest suitable school is more than two miles from their home if the child is aged under eight; and three miles if aged between eight and sixteen.
11. The guidance says the nearest suitable school is:

“Taken to mean the nearest qualifying school with places available that provides education appropriate to the age, ability and aptitude of the child, and any SEN that the child may have.”

12. It defines qualifying schools as:
• “community, foundation or voluntary schools;
• community or foundation special schools;
• non-maintained special schools;
• pupil referral units;
• maintained nursery schools; or
• city technology colleges (CTC), city colleges for the technology of the arts (CCTA) or academies, including free schools and University Technical Colleges (UTC).”
13. The guidance also provides wider rights to free transport for low income families. It does not require priority to ‘looked after children’.
14. Councils also have “discretionary powers to go beyond their statutory duties and provide transport for children who are not entitled to free transport.” They may make charges for, or pay all or some of the reasonable travel expenses where they use their discretionary powers to provide transport.
15. The guidance says councils should have an appeals system. It sets out a recommended appeal process.

Analysis

16. It is unlikely we would find fault in the Council’s decision as it is in line with the law and guidance. The Council has used the recommended appeals process. We are unlikely to find the process was flawed.

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Final decision

17. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because we are unlikely to find fault which caused the claimed injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman