Case Ref: 24 020 739 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council failed to secure provision for two children set out in their Education, Health and Care Plans. The Council has agreed to investigate whether it has sufficient supply of special schools, produce an action plan of how it will address any shortfall and report this to the relevant scrutiny committee.

Case Ref: 24 017 838 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will remind officers it is the Council's responsibility to secure the special educational provision set out in Section F of a young person's Education, Health and Care Plan. The Council will emphasise this duty is non-delegable, as per Section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
• The Council will remind officers the provision specified in Section F of a young person's Education, Health and Care Plan must be specific, detailed and quantifiable, as per the SEN Code of Practice.

Case Ref: 24 016 752 Category: Planning Sub Category: Enforcement

• The Council agreed to remind relevant officers of the need to keep records of contact with those being investigated by planning enforcement.
• The Council agreed to remind relevant officers of the need to keep updated those who report breaches of planning consent at key moments of its investigation.
• The Council agreed to ensure planning enforcement cases are progressed without avoidable delay.
• The Council agreed to review why the delay progressing the investigation of reports between April and December 2024 happened and ensure it acts to ensure this cannot be repeated on future cases.
• The Council agreed to keep the complainant informed about what action it continues to take on his reports.

Case Ref: 24 015 180 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• Within three months of the decision, the Council will:Review the delays it has encountered in securing a speech and language therapist in this matter and create a plan to avoid a recurrence of this.Create a long-term plan to deal with the issues it has faced in securing an occupational therapist going forward.

Case Ref: 24 009 842 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council agreed that it would remind all relevant staff, both in person and in writing, of the importance of adhering to the statutory timescales for completing annual reviews of children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans. This would include both the issuing of the notice explaining if it intends to maintain, amend or cease a Plan and where making amendments, when it should issue the final amended Plan. Alongside this briefing the Council would also review its current data management to ensure that its managers knew of cases not meeting these timescales, so they could intervene accordingly. This was after investigation found repeated significant delays in the completion of a child's review.
• The Council agreed to also brief relevant staff, both in person and in writing, on the importance of maintaining oversight of cases where they knew a child was not attending the school named in their EHC Plan or not receiving the education set out in the Plan. This would take account of guidance published by this office. Alongside the briefing the Council would review its current written materials to ensure officers knew what action to take in these circumstances. This was after investigation found a failure by the Council to maintain adequate oversight of a case where it knew for over four terms a child did not attend the school named in their Plan and was not receiving full-time education.

Case Ref: 24 006 343 Category: Education Sub Category: Special educational needs

• The Council will review its decision-making process by SEN panels to ensure:a) when making decisions SEN panels give enough details to allow case officers making specific arrangements for children and young people with SEN;b) there is a system in place for checking how outcomes of the SEN panels have been implemented.
• The Council will ensure new SEN case officers receive briefing when taking over children’s cases.

Case Ref: 24 010 958 Category: Housing Sub Category: Homelessness

• Within three months of the decision, the Council will: • Through managerial oversight or other appropriate means, ensure the Council promptly accepts the prevention duty and issues a personalised housing plan when satisfied an applicant is threatened with homelessness. • Provide training or guidance to relevant staff on deciding when a private tenant served a notice is homeless and how to record this to demonstrate regard for Chapter 6of the Code of Guidance in every case.• Remind relevant staff that no one owed the interim accommodation duty should be evicted by bailiffs because the Council has not provided accommodation.2. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

Case Ref: 23 016 883 Category: Environment and regulation Sub Category: Refuse and recycling

• The Council agreed to send a further reminder to the relevant crew about arrangements for collecting recycling bins on this side of the road.

Case Ref: 23 016 355 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council has agreed to provide a copy of this decision statement to officers that process housing applications to make them aware of the need to avoid taking an overly restrictive approach when assessing evidence provided by applicants.

Case Ref: 23 014 983 Category: Housing Sub Category: Allocations

• The Council has also agreed that it will issue a reminder to relevant staff of the duty to carry out an assessment if there is reason to believe a person may be homeless or threatened with homelessness within the next 56 days.