Summary: Mrs B complains that the Council delayed excessively in producing a final education and healthcare plan (EHCP) for her daughter C, failed to provide any education since September 2016 and repeatedly threatened Mrs B with legal action for her daughter’s non-attendance at school.

Finding

The Ombudsman upheld the complaint and found fault causing injustice.

Recommendations

The Council has agreed to:

• pay C £7,200 for being out of education and without any special educational provision for approximately 18 months;
• pay Mrs B £500 for her distress and time and trouble in pursuing the complaint;
• pay Mrs B £675 for the cost of the occupational therapy report;
• arrange training for all staff involved in special educational needs on:
  • the statutory timescales for producing EHC plans;
  • the need to properly consider all the evidence available and give reasons for rejecting evidence provided by parents;
  • the statutory duty to provide suitable education when a child is absent from school due to illness, exclusion or otherwise; and
  • the need to properly review events in accordance with those statutory duties when a complaint is made.

Print this page