Lancashire County Council (24 015 964)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We have upheld this complaint because the Council delayed carrying out a review of a child’s Education Health and Care Plan. The Council has agreed to resolve the complaint by making a suitable payment to the complainant to remedy the injustice this caused.
The complaint
- Miss X complains that the Council delayed issuing an amended Education Health and Care (EHC) plan for her child after it carried out a review.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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)
- Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- If we were to investigate this complaint it is likely we would find fault. This is because the Council took around a year to issue a final EHC plan for Miss X’s child, after it carried out a review.
- We have recently upheld other complaints about delays with the Council completing reviews of EHC plans, and we are satisfied that the Council is taking steps to resolve this issue. I have therefore not recommended anything further regarding this point.
- However, the delays have caused Miss X distress in the form of frustration and uncertainty. Whilst the Council has apologised for the delay, I consider that it should make a payment to Miss X. I therefore asked the Council to write to make a payment to Miss X of £300 to remedy the distress caused by the delay. To its credit, the Council agreed.
Final decision
- We have upheld Miss X’s complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve the matter by providing a suitable remedy.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman