Case Ref: 22 005 559 Category: Education Sub Category: Alternative provision

• The Council should provide suitable staff training or reminders to staff of its duties under law and guidance to provide alternative provision when a child of statutory school age is out of school for any reason. The Council should consider sharing a copy of our focus report “Out of school, out of sight?”.

Case Ref: 22 001 487 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council has agreed to highlight the steps it has taken over the past year as part of its reforms to improve the adherence to statutory timescales in producing new EHC plans following a needs assessment and responding to annual reviews of EHC plans and how these improvements are being monitored.

Case Ref: 22 009 178 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• Remind relevant staff of the timescales for issuing final amended EHC plans following the Council issuing an amendment notice and include this in future training.
• Review its procedure for covering cases when staff are absent.
• Review its procedure for considering provision requests to ensure these are dealt with in a timely manner.

Case Ref: 22 008 240 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will send a reminder to complaints officers to remind them of the need to adhere to complaint timescales, to inform complainants when a response will be delayed and to ensure complaint responses properly address the concerns raised.
• The Council will carry out a training session for complaints officers dealing with special educational needs cases to cover the issue of what can be considered as part of a complaint when an appeal has been submitted to tribunal.
• The Council will send a reminder to officers dealing with EHCP’s about the need to obtain evidence from schools when a parent reports that provision is not in place so the Council can satisfy itself all the provision is in place.

Case Ref: 22 006 659 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will remind officers dealing with complaints of the need to ensure the complaints process deals with issues that are separate to any issues which attract a right of appeal.

Case Ref: 22 006 250 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will arrange the one day assertiveness training.
• The Council will provide evidence of the action it has taken following the independent review of its special educational needs services where it is relevant to the issues raised in this complaint.
• The Council will confirm it has expedited the visit from the inclusion facilitator.
• The Council will arrange for the ICT assessment to take. place/confirm it has taken place.

Case Ref: 22 001 396 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will review its processes to ensure provision in Education, Health and Care plans is put in place on time and personal budgets requests are dealt with in a timely way.
• The Council will ensure its commissioning arrangements are sufficient to meet the needs of children with Special Educational and Disability needs locally.
• When the Council upholds a complaint which has resulted in loss of a service it will consider whether a financial remedy is merited to avoid the need for complainants to bring cases to the Ombudsman unnecessarily.
• The Council will review its Special Education and Disability action plan, including around communication with families, to consider if further service improvements are required in light of this complaint.

Case Ref: 22 001 180 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will provide evidence to show it has taken action to ensure, as far as possible, that staff adhere to statutory timescales regarding the issuing of amended and final EHC Plans after an annual review.

Case Ref: 22 000 993 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will remind staff about the need to respond to all parts of complaints with sufficient detail to ensure it is clear what has been upheld or not upheld, and the reasons for the conclusion reached, and to explain the basis of any payments offered if appropriate.

Case Ref: 21 018 649 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Other

• We found fault with the Council for poor communication. The Council has agreed that it will write to us setting out its proposals for improving communication with the family's of those using adult social care.
• We found the Council at fault for the services provided by a residential home for people with learning disabilities. The Council has agreed that it will carry out an audit of the care provided at that home and ensure that systems and care are improved. It will report back to the Ombudsman with its findings.