Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of its review of her daughter’s Education Health and Care Plan. This is because the Council has offered a suitable remedy and it is therefore unlikely we could achieve anything more for Ms X.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Ms X, complains the Council failed to properly plan for her daughter Y’s transfer to secondary school as part of the review process for her Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) review in early 2023. She says the Council failed to meet the statutory deadline causing uncertainty, anxiety and stress and that she had to take time off work to resolve the issue.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions a council has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. The Council accepts it was at fault for failing to name a secondary school for Y. It has agreed to improve its practices and apologised to Ms X. It also offered her £500 for her frustration and avoidable distress.
5. Ms X is not happy with the Council’s offer. She says the amount does not even cover the time she has had to take off work, let alone provide a remedy for the stress and emotional damage caused.
6. However the remedies we recommend are modest and the amount the Council has offered is significant. Ms X and Y clearly suffered some distress and anxiety as a result of the Council’s actions but we do not usually recommend remedies for loss of earnings. The underlying issue has now been resolved as the Council has named Ms X’s preferred school in Y’s EHCP and the amount offered is sufficient to remedy the impact of its fault on Ms X and Y. It is therefore unlikely further investigation would achieve anything more for Ms X.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the Council has offered a suitable remedy for the issues identified in its handling of Y’s EHCP and it is unlikely we would recommend anything more.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman