Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with an appeal to the Tribunal and other related matters. This is because the fact the complainant appealed places the matter outside our jurisdiction. We cannot consider complaints about schools.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mrs X, complained about the Council’s actions relating to her children’s Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). Mrs X appealed the plans to the Tribunal. Mrs X says there were problems with communication, the Council missed deadlines, and failed to provide information requested for the hearings. She says the Council failed to communicate with her child’s school, meaning they were wrongly entered for public examinations. Mrs X also raised concerns about how the school was coding her daughter’s absence and the education provided.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) considers appeals against council decisions regarding special educational needs. We refer to it as the SEND Tribunal in this decision statement.
5. 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))
6. We cannot investigate complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(b), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. The Ombudsman cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she has appealed to the SEND Tribunal. When an appeal has been made, the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction to consider related matters from the point at which appeal rights were engaged to the point at which the SEND Tribunal issues its decision. The Courts have held that this restriction applies to anything related to the matters at issue in the appeal. We cannot investigate the conduct of the parties, the information provided to the Tribunal, or the provision made in the interim. Any actions by the Council linked to something we cannot consider are also outside our jurisdiction.
9. A decision to enter one of Mrs X’s children for public examinations rests primarily with the school. This also applies to coding the attendance register and providing education provided during periods of non-attendance. As explained in paragraph 6 we have no powers to consider complaints about schools. This is not something we can consider.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she has appealed to the Tribunal and we cannot consider complaints about schools. The complaint is therefore outside our jurisdiction.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman