Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about delay in the Council completing an Education, Health, and Care needs assessment for her child. This is because the Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains about delay in the Council completing an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment for her child.

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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 must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Miss X requested the Council complete an EHC needs assessment. The Council initially declined, and Miss X appealed. In August 2023, the Council decided not to oppose the appeal. Therefore, the Council needed to have either decided:
• not to issue an EHC plan within 10 weeks (October 2023), or
• issue a final EHC plan within 14 weeks (November 2023).
6. To date, the Council has yet to decide how it will proceed due to an Educational Psychologist not being assigned to Miss X’s child. I am satisfied this will be causing distress, frustration, and uncertainty.
7. We therefore asked the Council to consider remedying the injustice caused by its actions by making a financial payment of £100 per month until the Council either informs Miss X that it has decided not to issue an EHC plan or when it issues the final EHC plan.
8. If the Council decides not to issue an EHC plan, the final payment will be calculated from October 2023. If the Council decides to issue a final EHC plan, the final payment will be calculated from November 2023. The payment is to be made retrospectively, not as an ongoing payment.
9. We previously completed other investigations regarding this Council about delays in completing an EHC needs assessments because of a lack of educational psychologists. The Council provided evidence of service improvements, including recruitment of more educational psychologists (both internal and external), increasing funding of its SEND department, and an action plan to reduce its backlog of decisions. I am satisfied the Council has not yet had sufficient time for these improvements to imbed, especially when considering the shortage of educational psychologists is a national issue.

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Agreed action

10. To its credit, the Council agreed to resolve the complaint and will complete the above within four weeks of when it makes its decision not to issue an EHC plan or when it issues the final EHC plan.
11. The Council will provide us with an update every four weeks as to the progress of the EHC needs assessment.

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Final decision

12. We have upheld this complaint because the Council has agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman