Summary: We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council failed to arrange a suitable school placement or alternative educational provision for her child. These matters overlap with a SEND Tribunal appeal about her child’s Education, Health and Care Plan.

The complaint

1. In February 2025, the Council issued a final Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan) for Mrs X’s child, Z.
2. Mrs X complains the Council:
1. failed to name a suitable school in Section I of the Plan; and
2. failed to arrange a suitable education for Z, including the special educational provision, since issuing the Plan, despite Z being unable to attend school.

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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. 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)
5. The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) considers appeals against council decisions regarding special educational needs. We refer to it as the SEND Tribunal in this decision statement.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
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 decision not to name a school in Z’s EHC Plan or failure to arrange the provision in Z’s Plan. Mrs X has appealed to the SEND Tribunal about the school placement and provision specified in the Plan. We cannot look at the consequences of the Council’s decisions either. This includes Mrs X’s complaint that Z was missing educational provision, as well as the provision in Section F, as Z was unable to attend school. The alleged fault in the Council’s decision-making is directly linked to Mrs X’s appeal. Any dispute over provision while Z was not in school is linked to Mrs X’s appeal about the provision in the Plan and the school placement. We have no power to look at any complaint that overlaps with a SEND Tribunal appeal.

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Final decision

9. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council failed to arrange a suitable school placement or alternative educational provision for her child. These matters overlap with a SEND Tribunal appeal about her child’s Education, Health and Care Plan.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman