Summary

Mrs X complains the Council failed to provide her son (B) with a suitable alternative education following his exclusion from school in 2014.

The complaint

Mrs X complains the Council did not provide B with education to meet his needs, and did not update his Statement of Special Educational Needs. It also took too long to transfer her son to an Education, Health and Care Plan.

Findings

The Ombudsman upheld the complaint and fund fault causing injustice.

Recommendations

To remedy the injustice caused to Mrs X and B by the Council’s failure to deliver a suitable alternative education, the Council has agreed to

• Apologise to Mrs X for its failings
• Pay Mrs X £2,400, this is £1,200 a term from the date we consider the Council should have acted to ensure the education B received was suitable. It should be used for B’s educational benefit to meet the cost of education provision or items that support education and training for B, outside of that identified in the EHC Plan. The Council and Mrs X should agree how the money is used
• Pay Mrs X £500 to recognise the extra strain she was placed under and to recognise her time and trouble in consistently complaining to the Council about the suitability of B’s home education.
• Reviews its procedures to ensure it monitors the suitable alternative education put in place for those out of school.

To remedy the injustice caused to B by the Council’s delays in the EHC Plan process, the Council has agreed to:

• Pay Mrs X a further £900, to be used for B’s educational benefit as above.  This is to recognise B has missed a significant period of special educational needs provision that B could have expected to receive from November 2015 at the latest, had the Council completed its transfer of B’s EHC Plan without delay.
• Improve its procedures to ensure it acts on changes in the circumstances of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and holds emergency reviews where necessary.
• Takes action to ensure it completes the EHC Plan transfer process within the required 18 weeks.

Ombudsman satisfied with Council's response: 5 March 2018.

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