Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s delay in issuing an Education, Health and Care Plan. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to consider it now.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to issue his child Y’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan within statutory timescales. He also complains of missed education and injustice suffered while awaiting the outcome of a Tribunal appeal.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended).
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)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. Mr X complains of delays up to the date the Council issued a final EHC Plan in September 2022. The complaint is late and there are no good reasons to disapply the time limit, therefore I will not investigate it.
7. Mr X appealed the educational provision detailed in the EHC Plan. We cannot look at the matters appealed, or any injustice related to this, as it is not separable from the appeal.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint because it is late.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman