Essex County Council (22 000 235)

Category : Education > Special educational needs

Decision : Closed after initial enquiries

Decision date : 03 May 2022

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about the actions of the Council as it is not the relevant authority for dealing with Mr and Mrs X’s child’s special educational needs. We cannot investigate the actions of a school or the Council’s response to a complaint about the school.

The complaint

  1. Mr and Mrs X said a school failed to act properly to support their request for an Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan for their child. They said the Council failed to deal with their complaint about this.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

  1. We cannot investigate a complaint where the body complained about is not responsible for the issue being raised. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(1), as amended)
  2. We cannot investigate complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(b), as amended)
  3. The Courts have said that we cannot investigate a complaint about any action by a council, concerning a matter which is itself out of our jurisdiction. (R (on the application of M) v Commissioner for Local Administration [2006] EHWCC 2847 (Admin))

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How I considered this complaint

  1. I considered information provided by the complainant.
  2. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

  1. Mr and Mrs X’s child attends a school in the Council’s area. But the family does not live in the Council’s area. That means the relevant authority for their child’s special educational needs (SEN) is not Essex County Council.

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Final decision

  1. We cannot investigate Mr and Mrs X’s complaint because:
  • The Council is not responsible for the issue being raised;
  • The actions of a school are outside our jurisdiction; and
  • The Council’s complaint handling is thus also outside our jurisdiction.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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