Summary: Mrs B complained about the Council’s actions in respect of providing transport assistance for her child, C to attend college. We have found the Council failed to explain why further independent travel training was appropriate, failed to properly consider C’s specific needs and difficulties using public transport and failed to communicate the reasons for its decision. The Council has agreed to apologise to Mrs B and C and make a symbolic payment to them.

The complaint

1. Mrs B complained that Coventry City Council (the Council) in respect of her child C,:
• failed to find a suitable post-16 placement for C since 2023;
• removed transport to their college placement in February 2024 without good reason which led to the failure of the placement;
• insisted that C repeat the first year of a course at a different college which they had already completed at the previous college;
• failed to provide any transport to the second college and refused the appeal for transport without good reason;
• relied on independent travel training to resolve C’s difficulties with transport with no evidence this was a viable solution; and
• based its stage one complaint response on inaccurate information and refused to alter its view when provided with the correct information.
2. Mrs B says this has caused C significant distress, and they have missed out on essential education. She says she has been caused distress, frustration and inconvenience.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. 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)
5. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(1), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

6. Mrs B complained to us in April 2025, so I have exercised discretion to investigate events from February 2024 when the travel assistance stopped. I consider it was reasonable for Mrs B to have complained to us sooner about the earlier events.

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered evidence provided by Mrs B and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
8. Mrs B and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.
9. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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What I found

Council’s post-16 transport policy

10. The Council’s policy says that in order to qualify for travel assistance the student will be required to demonstrate how their chosen study programme meets their needs and offers academic progression towards their career goals. Support will be provided only to the nearest available school or college, where a suitable study programme is available. The Council will not provide travel assistance to students who choose not to attend the nearest school or college offering a suitable programme. Transport will not be provided on the basis of a single subject being unavailable at the nearest learning provider.
11. The Council says it encourages learners aged 16+ to travel independently on public transport, to enable them to develop the skills for a successful transition into adulthood. It operates an Independent Travel Training Scheme for eligible young people and it expects that the parents and carers of young people will continue to practice independent travel skills throughout the summer holiday, prior to starting any study programme.
12. The Council recognises that independent travel, including the use of public transport, is not always a possibility for students with severe and complex learning difficulties and disability, and additional assistance with travel will be required.

What happened

Background

13. Mrs B’s child C has special educational needs and has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan. In January 2023 the Council started considering their post-16 placement. College D said it could meet C’s needs, but C chose a college further away (College E) because it offered a course in a particular subject they wished to do once they had passed their English GCSE.
14. The Council named College E in the EHC Plan but made clear it would not provide transport as it was not the nearest provision which could meet C’s needs. It did however offer to provide transport in the mornings only on a short-term basis to allow C time to adapt to the new journey. C also successfully completed a course of travel training in August 2023.
15. The Council gave notice in December 2023 that it was going to stop the taxi transport after the February 2024 half-term. Mrs B said she was happy for C to try independent travel both ways but expressed concern at the length of time it would take in the morning by public transport.

March to June 2024

16. C struggled to manage the journey twice a day. It was taking 3 to 4 hours each way and their attendance dropped significantly. In March 2024 an emergency annual review was held. The Council confirmed the decision to remove the taxi stood. It said C’s options were to either stay at College E, making their own way there and back, or to move to College D and restart the course. Mrs B says the Council were positive that transport would be provided as it was the nearest college that would meet C’s needs.
17. The annual review paperwork noted that C could not manage the journey on public transport twice a day; the attempt to do so had seriously affected their mental health and they had started to self-harm. C said the transport was so unreliable, with so many steps they didn’t know how to do it all. Even when Mrs B took them to the train station they still could not manage it.
18. The annual review also suggested some changes to the EHC Plan including:
• Noting that C’s sensory processing difficulties contributed to their anxiety in busy or noisy environments and was an issue when they used public transport due to the speed of getting on and off buses and trains.
• Noting that C’s balance and gross motor skill difficulties make using public transport difficult due to their lack of stability and clumsiness.
• The OT assessment adding travel assistance into section F.
19. C finished the year at College E but only because the College had provided some transport out of its own funds.
20. On 26 June 2024 the Council issued a final amended EHC Plan naming College D from September 2024. It said C may find public transport difficult due to sensory processing difficulties particularly in busy and noisy environments. It said that C would be assessed for, and provided with, independent travel training.
21. C had to repeat the first year of the course at College D despite successfully completing the year at College E. This was due to College E using a different exam board.

September to December 2024

22. C started at College D without any transport provision. On 17 September Mrs B’s MP asked the Council to consider providing transport for C as the journey to College D was taking two hours by public transport and was too much.
23. Mrs B emailed the Council on 24 October chasing a response. She detailed a severe deterioration in C’s mental health and requested an emergency annual review. On 28 October the Council agreed to look into the transport and on 30 October it said an emergency review was being arranged.
24. Mrs B chased the Council again on 7 November 2024 saying that C was so anxious about getting up in time to get the bus to college in the morning they were staying awake all night. She did not receive a reply.
25. On 22 November she applied for transport assistance. She said C could not access public transport and she could not take them due to other commitments.
26. On 11 December the Council notified Mrs B that C was not eligible for transport assistance because the Council’s policy encouraged independent travel for post-16 students. As an exception it agreed to provide refresher travel training to familiarise C with the new route. It gave Mrs C a right of appeal against the decision within 20 working days.

Formal complaint

27. Mrs B did not appeal. She said C was so unwell they were medically unfit to attend college and College D had withdrawn C’s place in December as their attendance was so low, it did not consider it would be possible for them to complete the course. Instead, she made a complaint in January 2025.
28. The Council responded on 31 January. It did not uphold the complaint. It confirmed that the Council had issued its final decision on transport assistance in December 2024. It noted that the offer of travel training had not been taken up as C was now unable to leave the house and was no longer on the college roll.
29. Mrs B escalated her complaint and on 6 March the Council sent its stage two review response. It confirmed its stage one response. Mrs B complained to us on 1 April.
30. In response to my enquiries the Council confirmed that College D is the nearest provision which can meet C’s needs. It says there are two options for C to get to College D, both involving walking and two buses and taking between an hour and a quarter and an hour and 20 minutes. The Council says it considers the journey reasonable for C to take.
31. In response to a draft of my decision the Council said C no longer requires travel assistance for education as they are accessing education in a different way.

Findings

Failed to find a suitable post-16 placement for C since 2023

32. This part of the complaint is too old for me to investigate now.

Removed transport to C’s college placement in February 2024 without good reason which led to the failure of the placement

33. The Council never agreed to provide transport on a permanent basis. It’s initial offer was on a temporary basis only to allow C to get used to the new placement. It actually provided transport for 1.5 terms (equivalent to half and academic year) and gave half a term’s notice in December 2023 that it was going to end the transport. I have not found fault with the way the Council made this decision.

Insisted that C repeat the first year of a course at College D which they had already completed at College E

34. This was a decision for College D to make. I have not seen evidence that the Council insisted on this happening.

Failed to provide any transport to College D, refused the appeal for transport without good reason and relied on independent travel training to resolve C’s difficulties with transport with no evidence this was a viable solution

35. There is clear evidence at the time of the Annual Review in March 2024 that C had been unable to attend College E once the travel assistance stopped and that the travelling had seriously affected their mental health. College E said when C was able to attend, their academic work was good. C described their difficulties doing the journey by public transport involving different buses and trains, with delays. They were overwhelmed and could not do it even though they had successfully completed independent travel training. The suggested changes also included reference to their balance and gross motor skills difficulties which meant using public transport caused physical difficulties as well.
36. The Annual Review acknowledged these difficulties and suggested changes to the EHC Plan to include them. It also suggested that travel assistance should be added to the section F provision via the Occupational Therapist assessment.
37. Although the final EHC Plan included the description of the difficulties using public transport it only offered independent travel training. There is no evidence of why or how the Council reached this decision given the difficulties C had described in using public transport (supported by the Annual Review) which went beyond a lack of confidence in using a new route. This was fault which caused C and Mrs B uncertainty as to why the Council was not offering travel assistance.
38. There is no evidence the Council offered C independent travel training at this point, and they started at College D with no further travel training or transport assistance. This was fault as the Council should have arranged travel training before C started at College D and reviewed the situation after a few weeks.
39. Despite Mrs B sending regular emails between September and November 2024 about the problems C was experiencing with the journey (up to two hours each way) the Council did not respond or suggest Mrs B should apply for travel assistance. This was fault. The poor communication exacerbated the lack of explanation around the transport decision and did not give Mrs B a way to progress the matter
40. Mrs B only made a transport application in late November 2024 after taking advice from an independent source. The Council decided in December 2024 that it would only offer independent travel training. The decision made no mention of C’s special educational needs and only acknowledged they had difficulties using public transport. It did not explain how the specific difficulties C experienced with public transport would be resolved by more independent travel training. Neither did it consider the reality of C’s journey including the length of time it was taking: between two and two and a half hours. This was fault as Mrs B was unable to understand why the Council had reached its decision and why it had ignored her evidence about C’s particular difficulties. Furthermore, by the time the Council reached this decision, it was too late for C, as the college had already ended the placement due to poor attendance arising from the transport difficulties.
41. Overall, I do not consider the Council properly considered C’s specific needs arising from their health conditions in respect of travel to College D. In particular it does not appear to have considered the section of its policy which says it recognises that independent travel, including the use of public transport, is not always a possibility for students with severe and complex learning difficulties and disability, and additional assistance with travel will be required. It has offered no explanation as to why this is not the case for C given their experiences with public transport to date.
42. This was fault which caused C and Mrs B injustice. As the college is the nearest one which could meet C’s needs, there were no other options for C to attend further education without transport assistance.
43. I acknowledge the Council’s view that transport was not the only reason why C’s attendance at College D and that Mrs B did not appeal the transport decision. As I have explained above it was too late for an appeal to be of benefit to C as the college had already withdrawn the place. Furthermore
44. I consider the Council was largely responsible for that delay as it failed to respond to any of Mrs B’s communications between September and November 2024.

Based its stage one complaint response on inaccurate information and refused to alter its view when provided with the correct information

45. The Council mistakenly said in its stage one response that it had consulted Coventry College in 2023. This event is too old for me to investigate now.

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Action

46. In recognition of the injustice caused to C and Mrs B I recommend the Council within one month of the date of my final decision:
• Apologise to C and Mrs B and make a symbolic payment of £800 (£500 for the uncertainty caused to C by the failure to address their transport issues between September and November 2024 and then the failure to consider the appeal properly and £300 for the distress and uncertainty caused to Mrs B).
47. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

48. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has agreed actions to remedy injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman