Case Ref: 24 021 611 Category: Education Sub Category: Alternative provision

• The Council will ensure it has a process in place to ensure that where a refusal to complete an Education, Health and Care needs assessment decision is overturned during a mediation meeting, the assessment should begin without delay and the agreement to assess letter should be issued without delay. The Council should make its relevant teams aware of this process.

Case Ref: 24 017 975 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council should remind staff in its Special Educational Needs and Disability team of the need to follow the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations where a child with an Education, Health and Care Plan moves into the Council’s area and the importance of ensuring Education, Health and Care Plan provision is in place and annual reviews are completed by the relevant deadlines.

Case Ref: 24 017 239 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Safeguarding

• The Council will ensure it has a robust system in place to prevent staff absences causing delays to section 42 Care Act 2014 safeguarding enquiries.

Case Ref: 24 013 166 Category: Planning Sub Category: Enforcement

• The Council agreed to issue advice to its planning enforcement officers on the importance of keeping clear records of their contacts with developers and their evolving thinking on their approach towards taking enforcement action. In particular, that they would record their thinking if a developer failed to comply with an Enforcement Warning Notice as happened in this case.
• The Council agreed to introduce clear customer service standards for communicating with those who report breaches of planning control triggering planning enforcement enquiries. This would ensure regular contact with those reporting breaches during the course of enquiries that may last many weeks or months.
• The Council agreed also to review the performance of its planning service in responding to complaints, following an eight month delay in answering a complaint in this case. If delays were not reducing the Council agreed it would draw up a plan of action to tackle and monitor this.

Case Ref: 24 011 415 Category: Education Sub Category: School transport

• Issue reminder guidance about decision making for school transport applications. Ensure staff are aware of the need to evidence availability of school places in decision making, and in communication to parents.
• Share learning from this decision with the relevant teams, and panel members.

Case Ref: 24 010 308 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council failed to ensure a child received the special educational needs support from their Education, Health and Care Plan.The Council hasagreed to remind its officers that the duty to arrange the provision in sectionF of Education, Health and Care Plans is non-delegable in law and the Councilremains responsible.
• The Council hasagreed to remind its officers that annual reviews are a key opportunity for theCouncil to check that special educational provision from Education, Health andCare Plans is in place and if it learns this is not being delivered, it should actpromptly to arrange the provision.
• The Council has agreed to investigate what led to the delays in complaint handling in this case and outline action it has taken to prevent these delays in future.

Case Ref: 24 005 627 Category: Education Sub Category: Alternative provision

• The Council will remind relevant officers, either through training or a briefing note of the Council’s duties to consider its section 19 duty as soon as it is aware that a child is not attending school. The Council will also provide relevant officers with a copy of our guidance Out of school, out of sight? published July 2022.

Case Ref: 23 020 479 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council agreed tio share this case with its homelessness and allocations officers to emphasise the importance of examining the evidence submitted promptly and making timely decisions.

Case Ref: 24 014 934 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• the Council has agreed to complete a review of why there were delays in carrying out the agreed on service improvement recommendations and advise what actions it intends to take to prevent future reoccurrences.

Case Ref: 23 019 041 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Safeguarding

• The Council has agreed to remind its Quality Monitoring Team to follow up with service users to assure itself that that issues with care providers have been resolved following monitoring visits.