Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council withdrawing home to school transport. The Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Council unfairly withdrew home to school transport for her son.
2. She says without transport her son could not attend school and went without provision for an extended period.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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:

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, 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

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 complains the Council unfairly withdrew home to school transport for her son, C.
7. If we were to investigate Miss X’s complaint it is likely we would find the Council at fault. This is because the Council has accepted it should have kept home to school transport in place while it considered whether C was still entitled. It also accepted it had provided Miss X with poor communication during this time.
8. In response to the complaint the Council agreed to service improvements to prevent the fault from happening again. The Council’s remedy did not address the injustice to C. We therefore asked the Council to pay Miss X £1,200 to recognise the loss of education C experienced. To its credit, the Council has agreed to pay the financial remedy within one month of this decision. As we are happy with the Council’s agreed actions, it is not proportionate for us to investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

9. We have upheld this complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing an appropriate remedy.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman