Case Ref: 24 021 368 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• • Review whether it has suitable processes in place to check that all elements of Section F in a new or amended Plan are fully in place, and that additional funding requests are considered and decided in a timely way.
• • Consider what measures it will put in place to ensure children with Speech and Language provision in an EHC Plan receive that provision while on a waiting list for an NHS therapist.

Case Ref: 24 020 435 Category: Benefits and tax Sub Category: Housing benefit and council tax benefit

• Remind Housing Benefit staff of the Council’s duty as part of the Equality Act 2010 to consider and provide reasonable adjustments to service users, specifically with regard to how service users may require assistance to provide relevant information that may affect their benefit entitlement

Case Ref: 24 012 733 Category: Education Sub Category: School transport

• The Council's response to a special educational needs and disability (SEND) school transport appeal lacked the detail required by the statutory guidance. The Council has agreed to review its SEND school transport policy and procedures to ensure it complies with the statutory guidance.
• The Council will present a copy of the Ombudsman's decision and the outcome of its review of the SEND school transport policy and procedures to its Children, Young People and Education Scrutiny Commission.

Case Ref: 24 010 652 Category: Other Categories Sub Category: Commercial and contracts

• Review its processes to ensure there are no ongoing delays to issuing accurate invoices.
• Review its payment collection processes and consider explicitly attributing specific invoice numbers to collected sums to facilitate accurate reconciliation and accounting.

Case Ref: 24 000 164 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Residential care

• The Council should remind relevant staff by way of a staff circular, team meeting or other suitable method, about the following:a) the importance of involving an advocate as early as possible when there are safeguarding issues about a person who lacks capacity and has no one appropriate to help them; andb) the importance of communicating decisions about safeguarding.

Case Ref: 24 005 252 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will remind its SEND staff of the Council’s duty to provide all the special educational needs provision set out in a child, or young persons, Education, Health, and Care plans without delay. This includes circumstances where it has delegated or commissioned this to be delivered by other professionals.

Case Ref: 24 003 956 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• Within 8 weeks of my decision, the Council has agreed to:d) Identify learning from this complaint to ensure that a contingency plan is in place for unforeseen staff absences.

Case Ref: 24 000 037 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will review its protocol or internal guidance for transferring EHC Plans when a child moves out of its area to make sure this is clear and complies with the SEN Regulations. It should then share the protocol with staff, or if it decides that a separate protocol is not needed remind staff that the SEN Regulations has a strict timeframe for this.
• Share the final decision statement with relevant staff.

Case Ref: 23 019 872 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council agreed to share our decision with relevant staff members and remind them that if there are likely delays in the review process the Council can ask the complainant for an extension which must be done before the original due date of the review and must be done in writing.

Case Ref: 23 016 591 Category: Education Sub Category: School transport

• The Council will remind officers of the requirements set out in statutory guidance and its own transport policy, concerning how it must conduct both stages of the transport appeals procedure.