Summary: We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council failed to obtain relevant professional reports as part of an Education, Health and Care needs assessment of her child. This is because Mrs X appealed the content of the Education, Health and Care Plan to the SEND Tribunal, and the law says we cannot investigate.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council failed to obtain relevant evidence and professional reports during an Education, Health and Care needs assessment of her child, Y.
2. Mrs X said the matter caused her frustration and distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) considers appeals against council decisions regarding special educational needs. We refer to it as the Tribunal in this decision statement.
5. 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

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s Education, Health and Care needs assessment or the content of the final EHC Plan for her child, Y. This is because Mrs X appealed the content of the EHC Plan to the SEND Tribunal. The law says the Ombudsman cannot investigate any matter that has been appealed to a Tribunal or issues that are closely related to a matter under appeal.
9. Mrs X’s complaint is that the Council failed to obtain relevant assessments as part of the EHC process. The consequence of this is that, in Mrs X’s view, the final EHC Plan is “wrong” and does not accurately reflect her child’s needs.
10. The SEND Tribunal has wide ranging powers to obtain reports as part of its processes. Because Mrs X has appealed the content of the EHC Plan, the Ombudsman has no authority to investigate the steps the Council took in making the EHC Plan. The matter appealed is too closely linked to the complaint. Consequently, we cannot investigate.

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Final decision

11. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she appealed to a Tribunal.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman