Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of her child’s application for an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan. The Council has apologised and offered a remedy payment for the injustice caused by the delay in the application. There is nothing more we could achieve by investigating further.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council have not completed her son Y’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan assessment within statutory timescales. Mrs X said that this has caused stress and has impacted Y’s education. She would like the Council to provide clear timescales as to when the EHC Plan will be finalised.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. A child or young person with special educational needs may have an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan. This document sets out the child’s needs and what arrangements should be made to meet them.
6. The Council received a referral for Mrs X’s child to have an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment in September 2024. The Council should have either issued an ECH Plan, or informed Mrs X that they had refused to issue a plan by December 2024.
7. Mrs X complained to the Council about the delay in her son’s assessment for an EHC Plan in December 2024.
8. The Council apologised for the delay and agreed to pay Mrs X £100 per month of delay until a refusal, or a final EHC Plan was issued.
9. The Council stated that a shortage of Educational Psychologist advice had impacted upon the delay. They stated they were working to address the delays by recruiting additional Educational Psychologists and using associate and agency Educational Psychologists where possible.
10. The Council has explained that it could not give a clear timescale for when Y’s assessment would take place, but it is doing all it can to minimise further delay. Further investigation would not change this.
11. We will not investigate this complaint because the Council has apologised for the continuing delay, set out what it has done to address the delay, and offered a financial remedy in recognition of the delay. The Council’s offer of £100 per month of delay is in line with our guidance. There is nothing we could add by investigating the matter further.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the Council has investigated and offered appropriate remedy for the injustice caused by the delay in Y’s EHC Plan assessment. There is nothing more we could add by investigating the matter further.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman