Surrey County Council
Annual statistics ?Find out more about annual statistics
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Complaints upheld
89% Complaints upheld by Surrey County Council
89% of complaints we investigated were upheld.
This compares to an average of 85% in similar authorities.
141 upheld decisions
View upheld decisionsAdjusted for Surrey County Council's population, this is
11.6 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents.The average for authorities of this type is
4.5 upheld decisions per 100,000 residents.Statistics are based on a total of 158 investigations for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
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Compliance with Ombudsman recommendations
100% of cases were successfully implemented by Surrey County Council
100% of cases we were satisfied the Council had successfully implemented our recommendations.
This compares to an average of 100% in similar authorities.
Statistics are based on a total of 133 compliance outcomes for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
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Satisfactory remedies provided by the Council
3% Complaints with satisfactory remedy provided by Surrey County Council
In 3% of upheld cases we found the Council had provided a satisfactory remedy before the complaint reached the Ombudsman.
This compares to an average of 7% in similar authorities.
4 satisfactory remedy decisions
Statistics are based on a total of 141 upheld decisions for the period between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024
View all satisfactory remedy decisions
Annual letters
We write to councils each year to give a summary of the complaint statistics we record about them,
and their performance in responding to our investigations.
Reports ?Find out more about reports
In the last nine years, the Ombudsman has published the following reports against Surrey County Council
National specialist shortage having profound impact on children with SEND and their families
The shortage of educational psychologists is having a significant impact on councils’ ability to set out the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has said.
Surrey to apologise to family for not providing boy with proper education
Surrey County Council has agreed to review how it arranges and monitors special educational needs support for children and young people in the county following a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigation.
Woman left to die alone in Surrey care home
An elderly woman was left to die alone by Surrey care home staff while her daughter was waiting in a nearby room, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.
Teenager with autism misses start of term when council cancels transport
A teenager who attends a special school missed the start of the school year because Surrey County Council did not tell his mum she needed to reapply for transport, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.
Surrey County Council twice failed to resolve issues for boy with special needs
Surrey County Council has been told to apologise again to the family of a boy with special educational needs because it failed to do what it promised to resolve problems highlighted in a previous Ombudsman complaint.
Family left without support for severely autistic young son by Surrey County Council
A Surrey family who struggled to cope with their disabled son’s behaviour were forced to begin legal action against the county council before it provided the right accommodation for him, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.
The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) and Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) have issued a joint report on an investigation into Surrey County Council and Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust.
Service improvements ?Find out more about service improvements
Since April 2018, the Council has agreed to make the following improvements to its services following an Ombudsman investigation. We list up to 10 cases below – click ‘view all’ if there are more.
Case reference: 24 007 650
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council will remind staff who deal with complaints of the importance of putting forward tangible and measurable resolutions when they have identified fault and injustice.
Case reference: 24 005 704
Category: Education
Sub Category: Alternative provision
- The Council will remind staff where they are aware a child is not attending school, it should consider each individual case and its Section 19 duty in accordance with relevant law and guidance. This includes exploring whether alternative provision can be increased at each opportunity to do so.
Case reference: 24 004 684
Category: Children's care services
Sub Category: Child protection
- The Council will provide an update and evidence of the introduction of a section 20 information leaflet for families and the review completed to ensure appropriate communication about section 20. Section 20 Childrens Act 1989 is where a child or young person may be accommodated by a council, usually with the agreement to the arrangement by those with parental responsibility.
Case reference: 24 004 159
Category: Adult care services
Sub Category: Assessment and care plan
- Issue a reminder to all staff about the Council's recording policy and the need to respond to emails in a timely manner.
Case reference: 24 002 523
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council will review its process for securing special educational provision, such as speech and language therapy and occupational therapy, which cannot be delivered within a mainstream school setting and ensure there is a system in place to secure provision and funding without delay.
Case reference: 24 000 853
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council has agreed to carry out a lessons learned review to understand why there were such significant delays in finalising a child's Education Health and Care Plan, implementing the funding for their teaching assistant, and in consulting specialist school placements.
- The Council has agreed, following its lessons learned review, to make an action plan setting out what steps will be taken to prevent these delays occurring for children and parents in future.
Case reference: 23 021 496
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council has agreed to provide the Ombudsman with evidence of the service improvements it said it had made as a result of the experience the complainant had received.
Case reference: 23 021 144
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- Remind relevant staff of the importance of ensuring all specialist provision/therapy in Section F of Education, Health and Care Plans are secured and delivered to the child/young person to meet their special educational needs.
- Remind relevant staff of the importance of providing people with updates about any outstanding Education, Health and Care Plan matters. The Council should communicate information effectively and in a timely manner to prevent complaints.
Case reference: 23 021 046
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council will remind relevant staff that they do not need a parent's consent to consider and act on safeguarding concerns about a child or young person.
Case reference: 23 020 951
Category: Education
Sub Category: Special educational needs
- The Council agreed to remind officers they should ensure the correct right of appeal information is provided in decision letters following Panel decisions on Education, Health and Care Plans.
Last updated: 4 April 2015