Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s management of an Education, Health and Care plan. This is because the Council has already offered a reasonable remedy in line with our guidance and any remaining injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council has mismanaged his son’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan. He says the Council has failed to pay his son’s education provider, refund exam fees and provide appropriate communication around the changes of case workers.
2. He says he worries about his son’s educational future as he has lost trust in the Council.

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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 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:

• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

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

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mr X complained the Council had not paid his son’s education provider for a whole academic year and failed to refund him for exam fees that he has paid. He complained the Council’s communication with him has been poor and it has not told him of any changes in file handlers.
8. The Council has accepted it had not paid the education provider or provided Mr X with the refund he was entitled to. It also accepted there had been poor communication. It said it would refund the exam fees to Mr X and pay the education provider. It has provided evidence it has done this.
9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council mismanaged his son’s EHC plan. The Council has provided a suitable remedy in relation to the finance complaints in line with our guidance. I consider any injustice caused by the poor communication is not significant enough to warrant further investigation by the Ombudsman.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Council has offered a suitable remedy and there is insufficient injustice in relation to the remaining issues complained about.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman