Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council handled its Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment. There is not enough evidence of fault. The Council has carried out a care assessment. We could not achieve a different outcome if we investigated the complaint.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council failed to carry out a child in need assessment to identify care needs when considering his Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA) request.
2. He says he is worried this will leave his son without the support he needs to become independent and his family without the support of additional services to help them as carers.

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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:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(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 asked the Council to carry out a EHCNA for his son. He told the Council he felt his son, C, had unmet care needs. The Council said it would not carry out a care assessment as C did not have care needs. He complained the Council were not carrying out a child in need assessment to decide his care needs.
8. The Council responded to the complaint, but it did not accept fault in the way it had carried out its assessment. Mr X brought his complaint to the Ombudsman. The Council has subsequently carried out a care assessment for Mr X’s son.
9. He is still awaiting the final Education, Health and Care plan from the Council.
10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. The Council has carried out a care assessment as part of it EHCNA. We would be unlikely to find fault if we were to investigate as it has carried out a care assessment. If we were to investigate, we could not achieve anything more than recommending the Council carry out the assessment it has now carried out.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault and we could not achieve a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman