Summary: Ms X complained about the way the Council dealt with her son’s education. The Council was at fault for delaying in completing an education, health and care needs assessment. This caused distress, frustration and uncertainty to Ms X and Y. The Council has already apologised, made a payment and made service improvements, but it should make a further payment to Ms X to recognise the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains about the way the Council has dealt with her son, Y’s education. She says the Council delayed Y’s education, health and care needs assessment and failed to make appropriate arrangements for home to school transport.
2. Ms X says this has impacted on Y’s wellbeing and he has missed out on school and social opportunities because of the delays. Ms X says this has caused her significant distress and time and trouble in trying to secure the education Y is entitled to.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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)
4. When considering complaints we make findings based on the balance of probabilities. This means that we look at the available relevant evidence and decide what was more likely to have happened.
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(i), as amended)
6. 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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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered evidence provided by Ms X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
8. Ms X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

Legislation and guidance

EHC Plan 

9. 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. The EHC Plan is set out in sections. We cannot direct changes to the sections about their needs, education, or the name of the educational placement. Only the Tribunal or the council can do this. 

Timescales and process for EHC assessment 

10. Statutory guidance ‘Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ (‘the Code’) sets out the process for carrying out EHC assessments and producing EHC Plans. The guidance is based on the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEN Regulations 2014. It says the following: 

• Where the council receives a request for an EHC needs assessment it must decide whether to agree to the assessment and send its decision to the parent of the child or the young person within six weeks. 
• The process of assessing needs and developing EHC Plans “must be carried out in a timely manner”. Steps must be completed as soon as practicable. 
• If the council goes on to carry out an assessment, it must decide whether to issue an EHC Plan or refuse to issue a Plan within 16 weeks.
• If the council goes on to issue an EHC Plan, the whole process from the point when an assessment is requested until the final EHC Plan is issued must take no more than 20 weeks (unless certain specific circumstances apply);  

Advice and Information for EHC needs assessments

11. As part of the assessment, councils must gather advice from relevant professionals (SEND Regulation 6(1)). This includes: 

• the child’s educational placement; 
• medical advice and information from health care professionals involved with the child; 
• psychological advice and information from an Educational Psychologist (EP); 
• social care advice and information; 
• advice and information from any person requested by the parent or young person, where the council considers it reasonable; and 
• any other advice and information the council considers appropriate for a satisfactory assessment. 

School transport arrangements for eligible children

12. Local authorities must make suitable home to school travel arrangements as they consider necessary for ‘eligible children’ of compulsory school age to attend their ‘qualifying school’. The travel arrangements must be made and provided free of charge. The relevant qualifying school is the nearest school with places available that provides education appropriate to the age, ability and aptitude of the child, and any special educational needs the child may have. ‘Eligible children’ include:

• children living outside ‘statutory walking distance’ from the school (two miles for children under eight, three miles for children aged eight and above);
• children living within walking distance of the school but who cannot reasonably be expected to walk to school because of their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem;
• children living within walking distance of the school but who cannot walk to school because the route is unsafe; and
• children entitled on low-income grounds. (Education Act 1996, 508B(1) and Schedule 35B)

What happened?

13. In October 2024, Ms X asked the Council to complete an EHC needs assessment for Y. The Council decided it would complete the assessment in December.
14. In April 2025, Ms X complained to the Council via her MP. She complained the Council had failed to issue Y’s EHC plan because of delays with an educational psychologist assessment. She also complained that because the Council had failed to issue Y’s EHC plan, she felt she could not apply for funded school transport for Y because she had minimal evidence for eligibility.
15. The Council issued a stage one complaint response in May. It accepted it had not completed Y’s EHC assessment within the required timeframe because of a high volume of requests and a shortage of educational psychologists. It upheld her complaint and apologised, but said it could not give a specific timeframe for Y’s assessment to be completed.
16. The Council also decided that Y did not qualify for funded transport, but Ms X could make an application to an internal panel that considered exceptional circumstances if she disagreed with his eligibility.
17. In June, Ms X escalated her complaint to stage two. She complained that despite the Council acknowledging the delays, it had still not provided a clear timeframe for completing the assessment. She also said that without an EHC plan, Y was ineligible for funded school transport.
18. The Council responded to Ms X’s stage two complaint at the end of July. The Council upheld Ms X’s complaint about the delay in completing Y’s EHC needs assessment. It apologised, offered a symbolic payment of £150 and explained service improvements it was making to reduce delays.
19. The Council again explained that Ms X could apply to the internal transport panel if she wanted to apply for funded school transport for Y.
20. The Council allocated an educational psychologist to complete an assessment in April 2026.

Findings

EHC plan process

21. We expect councils to follow the statutory timeframes set out in the law and the Code.
22. The Council should have decided whether to issue an EHC plan or refuse to issue a plan by 16 April 2025. Although the Council has now arranged for an educational psychologist to complete an assessment, it has not yet completed its needs assessment and decided whether or not it will issue an EHC plan for Y.
23. This delay is not in line with statutory timeframes, and this is fault. This has caused frustration, uncertainty and distress to Ms X and Y. The Council has already apologised to Ms X and Y for the delay and offered a symbolic payment of £150. However, I do not consider this to be a suitable remedy and so I have made further recommendations.
24. I welcome that the Council started a SEND recovery plan in February 2026, which intends to improve the EHC needs assessment and plan process. For this reason, I do not consider it necessary to make any further service improvement recommendations related to this.

School transport

25. Ms X complained the Council failed to make appropriate arrangements for home to school transport for Y. I note that the Council told Ms X that if she remained unhappy with the Council noting that Y was ineligible for funded school transport, she could register any exceptional circumstances at an internal panel.
26. Ms X has not made any requests for Y’s case to be heard at the internal panel because she expresses she would not have enough evidence of exceptional circumstances without an EHC plan.
27. I cannot say, even on the balance of probabilities, whether Y’s circumstances would be exceptional enough for the Council to grant him funded school transport, with an EHC plan, particularly because the Council has not yet decided whether or not to issue a plan. For this reason, I find no fault in the actions of the Council related to this matter.
28. If Ms X remains unhappy with Y’s eligibility for funded school transport, she has the option of referring Y’s case to the internal panel, as the Council has advised her to do.

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Action

29. The Council has agreed to:

• remedy £100 a month from mid-April 2025 to the point it issues its decision letter if it goes on to refuse to issue an EHC plan to a maximum of six months after our final decision. The Council will deduct the £150 payment it made at stage two of the complaint process from the final amount. This payment should be made within four weeks of its decision to refuse the EHC plan. A part calculated payment can be made before this date with agreement between the Council and Ms X; or
• remedy £100 from mid-May 2025 until a final plan is issued if it plans to issue an EHC Plan to a maximum of six months after our final decision. The Council will deduct the £150 payment it made at stage two of the complaint process from the final amount. This payment should be made within four weeks of the Council issuing the EHC plan. A part calculated payment can be made before this date with agreement between the Council and Ms X.

30. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman