Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s actions during the Education Health and Care plan review process. Mrs X has a right of appeal to the SEND Tribunal about her child’s school placement and further investigation of her other points would not lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about poor communication during her child, Y’s, Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan review process. She also says Y has not received suitable full-time education since December 2022. This has caused her and Y distress and she has missed out on earnings. She wants the Council to provide Y with a suitable full-time education and provide a financial remedy for the lost education and distress caused.

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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. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (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 Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with 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, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

Background

8. Mrs X’s child, Y, has special educational needs and an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan.
9. Mrs X complained to the Council in December 2022. She complained about poor communication during Y’s EHC plan review process. She also disagreed with a decision that Y’s education should reduce to a part-time timetable. She told the Council she wanted Y to attend a special school that could meet their needs.
10. The Council issued a final amended EHC plan in February 2023.
11. The Council provided a final response to her complaint in March 2023. It upheld her complaints about poor communication and that Y had not received full-time education since December 2022.
12. It apologised for the identified faults. It offered Mrs X a financial remedy for Y’s lost educational provision and the distress caused and set out actions it would take going forward and to improve its services.

Analysis

13. The Council considered Mrs X’s complaints appropriately and upheld there was poor communication and that Y had missed out on some education. The apology and financial remedy offered in recognition of this is in line with our guidance on remedies. We could not add anything more to this and further investigation of these points would not lead to a different outcome.
14. The final EHC plan issued in February 2023 names Y’s school placement up until July 2023 and a type of school from September 2023 onwards. If Mrs X disagrees with this, she has a right of appeal to the SEND Tribunal and it is reasonable to expect her to use that right.

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Final decision

15. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she has a right of appeal to the SEND Tribunal about Y’s school placement and further investigation of her other points would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman