Summary: We have found fault with the Council for not securing alternative provision for Miss X’s son, Z for the first term after he stopped attending school. This caused Z to miss education. The Council has agreed to apologise and make a symbolic payment to Miss X.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains that her son Z has been out of school for 2 years and the Council has not secured suitable education or SEN provision. She said this has caused her and Z distress and meant that Z has fallen behind his peers and struggles with anxiety from the isolation.

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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 recommend a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. 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)

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What I have and have not investigated

5. I have not considered the content of Z’s EHC Plan. Miss X has appealed this to the Tribunal.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered evidence provided by Miss X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
7. Miss 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

Law and guidance

EHC Plan

8. 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

9. 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.
10. 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).

Section 19 duty

11. Section 19 of the Education Act 1996 says that the council must arrange suitable alternative educational provision when it finds that a child is unable to attend school because of a permanent exclusion, an illness, or for any other reason which make the school inaccessible to the child. The alternative educational provision must be suitable to the child’s age, ability and aptitude, and any special educational needs they have.

What happened

12. Miss X’s son, Z has SEN. In October 2024, Miss X asked the Council to carry out an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment. The Council arranged the educational psychologist assessment for December and then postponed it until January 2025 at Miss X’s request.
13. In December, Miss X told the Council that Z was not attending school. The Council involved the relevant education welfare and medical needs professionals. It said it worked with the school to put alternative provision (AP) in place for Z to support him to take his SATs and to support transition into Year 7 in September 2025.
14. In March 2025, the Council discussed potential AP for Z with Miss X. From April, it secured 2 hours a week of online AP for Z. The Council said this was suitable due to Z’s anxiety and mental health needs. The Council kept this under review and at the time of this decision, Z receives 4 hours per week of AP.
15. In March 2025, the Council issued Z’s final amended EHC Plan. This named a mainstream secondary school from September 2025. The Council arranged transition meetings and school visits for Miss X and Z. Miss X and Z did not attend the transition sessions and cancelled future dates.
16. In July 2025, the Council arranged an emergency review meeting. Miss X said the named mainstream school could not meet Z’s needs and asked for her preferred specialist school to be named.
17. The Council disagreed with Miss X and maintained the EHC Plan. Miss X appealed the Plan in October 2025.

My findings

EHC needs assessment and Plan

18. Miss X requested an EHC needs assessment in October 2024. The Council issued a final EHC Plan in March 2025. This was 3 weeks later than the 20-week deadline. However, the Council had arranged the educational psychologist assessment for December but postponed it until January at Miss X’s request.
19. I have found no fault with how the Council handled Z’s EHC Plan process.
20. Miss X disagrees with the content of the EHC Plan. She has appealed this.

Section 19 duty

21. Miss X informed the Council in December 2024 that Z was not attending school. The Council secured AP that started in April 2025. This meant that Z was without any education for one school term. This was fault. In line with our guidance on remedies, the Council has agreed to pay Miss X £900 in recognition of Z’s missed education.
22. From April 2025, Z had access to 2 hours a week of AP which has increased to 4 hours. While this does not amount to a full-time education, the Council has kept this under review and considered it suitable given Z’s needs.
23. I cannot question the Council’s decision if I am satisfied that it has reached it correctly. In this case, I have found no fault with the Council for not providing additional hours of AP for Z. It assessed Z’s needs and ability to access the AP and has kept the AP under review.

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Agreed action

24. Within 4 weeks of my decision, the Council will:
1. Apologise to Miss X for failing to secure alternative provision for her son, Z for the first term that he was unable to attend school.
2. Pay Miss X £900 in recognition of the one term of missed education.
25. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

26. I find fault causing injustice. The Council has agreed to take action to remedy injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman