Devon County Council (23 002 169)
Category : Education > Special educational needs
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 02 Jul 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about delay in issuing an Education Health and Care Plan. This is because investigation would achieve nothing significant.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I will refer to as Miss X, complains that the Council has delayed issuing her son’s Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Miss X’s son has special educational needs. She says she requested an Education Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) in November 2022 and that the Council agreed to issue an EHCP in April 2023. At the point at which Miss X came to the Ombudsman, the EHCP had not been issued.
- Miss X complained to the Council about the delay in the EHCNA and what she regards as a failure to properly communicate with her. In response, the Council accepted that it had been at fault and apologised. Miss X says the fault on the Council’s part caused her unnecessary distress and uncertainty, and jeopardised her son’s chance of obtaining specialist provision to start in September 2023.
- The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because it is unlikely we would achieve anything significant by doing so. The Council has accepted that it was at fault and has apologised. The EHCP was issued in May 2023 and names specialist provision for September 2023. Miss X’s son has not therefore missed out on provision. In the circumstances, the Ombudsman would not seek to achieve anything further. Investigation is not therefore warranted.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because it is unlikely we would achieve anything significant by doing so.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman