Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about his child’s education as it is outside our jurisdiction. Mr X has appealed to a tribunal, and we cannot consider complaints about schools.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complained about his child’s Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan). Mr X is unhappy with the school named and how the Council reached this decision. Mr X says the Council failed to properly assess his child. Mr X is also unhappy with the actions of the school his child attends.

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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 about the same matter. We also cannot investigate a complaint if in doing so we would overlap with the role of a tribunal to decide something which has been or could have been referred to it to resolve using its own powers. (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. We cannot investigate most complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(2), as amended)

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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

8. We will not start an investigation into Mr X’s complaint. It is not for us to take a view on whether the content of the EHC Plan is appropriate. This matter carries a right of appeal to the SEND Tribunal. This is the proper route by which to challenge the school named in an EHC Plan. Mr X has used this right.
9. Where appeal rights have been used, the matter is outside our jurisdiction from the point at which the appeal rights were available. As well as the school named in the EHC Plan, we cannot consider how the Council decided the content of the plan. This is because the decision-making is too closely linked to the matter appealed. The SEND Tribunal can decide if the school made should be changed and what assessments the Council should carry out. There is no discretion available to us to consider this matter.
10. Mr X is also unhappy with the actions of his child’s school. But as explained in paragraph 4 the law prevents us from looking at most things which happen in schools. This applies here and so we will not investigate.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is outside our jurisdiction.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman