Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about missed special education provision for Miss X’s child. The Council has already upheld her complaint and offered Miss X a suitable remedy for the injustice to her and her child, and further investigation by us would therefore not be proportionate.

The complaint

1. Miss X said the Council failed to secure the special education provision (SEP) and other therapies, due to her child (A) who had an Education, Health, and Care (EHC) Plan, and who was not attending school. Miss X said this had a significant impact on her and has impacted on A’s mental wellbeing.

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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 an organisation 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 Miss X and I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
4. I also considered our guidance on remedies.

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My assessment

5. Miss X said the Council failed to secure SEP that was due to A, as part of their EHC Plan. She said this also included Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) and Occupational Therapy (OT). Miss X made a complaint to the Council.
6. The Council replied to Miss X and apologised it had not secured the SLT and OT that it should have, when A stopped going to school in December 2023. It also accepted it had not provided A with any SEP whatsoever between December to February and had only provided A part time education provision from February up until the summer break.
7. It offered Miss X a symbolic financial remedy for the injustice to A in relation to missed SEP and other therapies for two academic terms. It also offered a further symbolic remedy to recognise the distress its actions had caused Miss X and A.
8. The Council have upheld Miss X’s complaint, apologised and the symbolic financial remedies it has offered Miss X, are in line with our guidance on remedies for missed SEP and distress. Therefore, we will not investigate, because I am satisfied with the Council’s actions to remedy any injustice there was to Miss X and A, and further investigation by us would not be proportionate.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the Council has already offered a suitable remedy for the injustice to Miss X and her child.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman