Summary: Mrs X complained that the Council failed to transfer her son’s Education, Health and Care plan when they moved out of the area. We have found that the Council was at fault. Mrs X’s son was without education for approximately one month. The Council has agreed to take steps to remedy his injustice.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains that the Council did not transfer her son Y’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan when she notified the Council she was moving out of the area. She says because of this, her son was without education at the start of the new academic year.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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(1), as amended)
4. 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

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

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What I found

The special educational needs and disability (SEND) code of practice

7. A child or young person with special educational needs may have an education, health and care (EHC) plan. This document sets out their needs and what arrangements should be made to meet them.
8. When a young person moves between council areas, arrangements must still be made for them to attend the placement named in their EHC plan, unless this would be impractical.
9. When children move home across local authority boundaries, local authorities should transfer the EHC plan from the ‘old’ local authority to the ‘new’ local authority within 15 days from when they first become aware of the move.
10. When the plan is transferred the new local authority must arrange the special educational provision set out in it, although a child may have to be placed in a school other than the one named on the plan if the distance of the move makes it impractical.

What happened

11. In mid-June 2025, Mrs X told Bromley that they would be moving out of the area early July 2025 and also informed the new council. She explained her preferred schools for Y and said his current school would not be suitable because it was too far. Before the move, they have been planning for Y to transfer to a specialist provision.
12. In early July 2025, Mrs X contacted both councils again to confirm that they would be moving at the end of July.
13. In early August 2025, she contacted the new council and was told the EHC plan had not yet been transferred. When she checked with Bromley, it said they had no records of her emails about the move.
14. Mrs X made a formal complaint to Bromley in mid-August 2025. The EHC plan was transferred four days later.
15. The Council responded in mid-September 2025, apologising for the delay, upholding her complaint and saying it was reviewing procedures to ensure that staffing pressures did not compromise quality or timeliness.
16. At the start of October 2025, Y began attending his new school.

My findings

17. Y’s EHC plan was transferred in August 2025 but not within 15-day timescale set out in in the SEND Code of Practice. This delay was fault by the Council.
18. Although the Council was no longer responsible for Y’s education once he had left its area, it is likely that the delay in transferring his EHC plan contributed to the overall delay in him starting his new school.

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Action

19. Within four weeks, the Council has agreed to:
• Write to Mrs X, apologising for the delay in transferring Y’s EHC plan. We publish guidance which sets out what we expect an effective apology to look like. The Council will consider this guidance when writing to Mrs X.
• Make a symbolic payment to Mrs X of £200 to recognise that the delay in transferring Y’s EHC plan contributed to delays to his education.
• Provide us with the outcome of its review of its procedures (as referred to in its complaint response), including any findings and recommendations.
20. The Council will provide us with evidence it has done these things.

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Decision

21. The Council was at fault. This caused injustice to Y, which the Council will now take action to address.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman