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.

Case Ref: 21 018 517 Category: Adult care services Sub Category: Assessment and care plan

• The Council has agreed to remind relevant staff to consider and record what, if any, interim support or equipment is necessary to meet care and support needs while waiting for home adaptations.

Case Ref: 21 018 111 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will send a reminder to officers dealing with children out of education to remind them of the need to keep part-time education packages under review and increase them when the child is ready.

Case Ref: 21 017 154 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council has agreed to take action, at a senior level, to address the shortage of SALT provision in the Council area. It should also take action to ensure communication with parents is improved. The Council should provide a report to the Ombudsman to confirm what it proposes to do.

Case Ref: 21 016 914 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council did not respond to communications within its published timescales. It will carry out analysis to identify how quickly the relevant team responded to communications from service users in the six months to the date of the final decision, and either develop a plan of action to ensure it responds within published timescales in future or reviews its policy to ensure its published timescales are realistic and achievable.