Wiltshire Council (25 020 563)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We have upheld this complaint because the Council delayed arranging an assessment from an Educational Psychologist. The Council has agreed to resolve the complaint by offering to make a suitable payment to the complainant to remedy the injustice this caused.
The complaint
- Mrs X complains that the Council delayed arranging a new Educational Psychology assessment for her son prior to the review of his Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)
- Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs X asked for a new assessment to be completed in April 2025, but the Council did not action this until August. The assessment has since been completed. In responding to Mrs X’s complaint, the Council apologised for the delays arranging the assessment.
- If we were to investigate Mrs X’s complaint it is likely we would find fault. This is because the delay in arranging the assessment has caused Mrs X distress in the form of uncertainty. Whilst the Council apologised to Mrs X it is likely that this did not fully remedy the distress caused.
- We therefore asked the Council to make a payment to Mrs X of £200 within one month to remedy the distress this has caused. To its credit, the Council agreed.
Final decision
- We have upheld Mrs X’s complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve the matter by providing a suitable remedy.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman