County council to pay more than £8k for multiple SEND failings

Following an investigation, the Ombudsman found the council at fault for failing to issue the child’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan within statutory timeframes, delaying in completing an annual review, failing to identify a post-16 placement within required timeframes, failing to provide provision set out in the plan and poor communication and complaint handling.

The woman behind the compliant, Mrs B, complained about the way the council dealt with her son's (C’s) education.

She said the council failed to:

• send a final Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan within statutory timeframes;
• complete an annual review within expected timeframes;
• amend C’s EHC plan for his transfer to post 16 education;
• provide provision named in the EHC plan;
• provide a school placement;
• complete actions from her complaint response;
• reimburse her the same fuel costs that it reimburses its staff;
• provide a free school meal equivalent while no school place was provided;
• respond to her about a financial payment it said it would consider as part of its complaint response; and
• poorly communicated with her and delayed in responding to her complaint.

She told the Ombudsman this had caused “significant distress” and caused C to be without provision. She said C had left secondary school with “no qualifications” and with “gaps in his language development”.

In response to the Ombudsman’s enquiries, the council said it “acknowledged” delays in issuing C’s final EHC plan – putting this down to “significant capacity issues within the SEN service and the complexity of C’s situation”.

The Ombudsman found a delay of 30 weeks in issuing the final EHCP, concluding that the council’s failure to meet the required timeframes amounted to fault.

Turning to the annual review complaint, the Ombudsman said: “The council should have completed an annual review by May 2023, but it did not hold the meeting until November 2024 and has still not completed the process nor sent Mrs B the paperwork.

“This considerable delay is fault which caused Mrs B and C distress and uncertainty. I cannot say what the outcome would have been had the council completed an annual review on time. But its failure to do so means it is unclear whether C had suitable support by way of an EHC plan from May 2023, and frustrated Mrs B’s appeal rights.”

The investigation also found a failure by the authority to identify a post-16 placement for C within required timeframes, and a failure to provide provision as set out in the plan.

The report noted: “This had a detrimental impact on C as he lost out on provision he was legally entitled to, which his EHC plan said he needed to access for his development and wellbeing, and to transition into adulthood.”

Lastly, criticising the council for poor communication “throughout the EHC process”, the Ombudsman observed that West Sussex said in its stage two complaint response that it would contact Mrs B about a financial remedy. Although it did do this, it delayed in doing so.

The report added: “The council also failed to respond to Mrs B’s queries about the financial remedy and this payment remains outstanding. This further poor communication with Mrs B is fault, which has caused her further frustration.”

To remedy the injustice caused, the Ombudsman recommended the council:

• write to Mrs B to apologise for the injustice caused by its faults.
• complete C’s annual review and send the paperwork to Mrs B;
• make a symbolic payment of £500 to Mrs B, on behalf of C, to recognise the frustration, distress and uncertainty caused by the delay in reviewing the EHC plan, failing to issue an EHC plan within timeframes and failing to name a post-16 provision within required timeframes;
• make a payment of £250 to Mrs B to recognise the frustration, distress and uncertainty caused to her by the delay in reviewing the EHC plan, failing to issue an EHC plan within timeframes and failing to provide C’s provision; and
• make a payment to Mrs B, on behalf of C, of £7,600 to reflect the lack of section F provision for C. This is made up of £1,900 over four terms from September 2023 to September 2024.

A spokesperson for West Sussex County Council said: “We have apologised to the family after accepting the Ombudsman’s findings and have issued the recommended payment to the complainant in recognition of the delay in completing the Education, Health and Care Plan."

Lottie Winson