| SPOTLIGHT |
Suffolk County Council failed to provide a young girl with alternative education provision for 18 months after she could no longer attend school, an investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.
The report concluded the council also failed to complete the Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan process in accordance with the statutory timeframes.
The mother behind the complaint (Miss X) had made “numerous requests” for the council to provide an educational package for her daughter that would allow her to study away from school. However, adequate provision was still not put in place, the Ombudsman found.
Miss X’s daughter, Y, received a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder in November 2021. She also had a Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) assessment which highlighted communication and interaction difficulties.
The council agreed to carry out an EHC needs assessment in May 2022. The Ombudsman said: “To comply with the statutory timeframe the council should have issued the final EHC Plan in early August 2022.”
The council issued a final EHC Plan on 27 September 2023. The plan did not name a school but specified the setting as a special school.
In response to the Ombudsman’s enquiries the council said the delays in the EHC Plan process were due to an officer’s absence and a change in systems within the council. The council confirmed it had not provided Y with any alternative education provision since March 2022, as it was consulting with school placements, the report noted.
The investigation concluded: “We are satisfied the council was aware in March 2022 that Y was not receiving a suitable education. We consider the council should have provided Y with alternative education provision between March 2022 and September 2023. The failure to do so is fault.
“The council’s failure to complete the EHC Plan process in accordance with the statutory timeframes is also fault. The whole process from the request for an EHC needs assessment to when the final plan is issued should take no more than 20 weeks. In this case, the Council took 18 months. Delays of this nature are both concerning and clearly unacceptable.”
To remedy the injustice caused, Suffolk agreed to apologise to the family and pay them £8,000 for the delays in the EHC Plan process and failure to provide alternative education.
It also agreed to pay the mother a further £300 to acknowledge the distress and anxiety she felt when dealing with the council.
According to the Ombudsman, the council is currently under the “scrutiny and intervention” of Ofsted and has identified improvements which it is already implementing.
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Ms Amerdeep Somal said: “The mother here did all she could to get the council to do what they should. Even then, her daughter missed out on 18 months of education at a crucial time in her life because the council did not prioritise her needs.
“Despite the mother’s repeated contact with the council, no education was forthcoming and instead the council took far too long to produce a vital Education, Health and Care Plan for the girl which would identify the support that would be provided for her.”
She continued: “The issues at Suffolk have been recognised, both by the council itself and by Ofsted, and there is much local improvement to be carried out, However, the wider national systemic problems with special educational needs and disabilities provision cannot be ignored: as we have repeatedly highlighted there are significant problems across the country requiring national attention and policy change to ensure children are supported during the most crucial stage of their lives.
“Obviously any future investigations we carry out into the council’s education services will provide important evidence as to whether the council’s efforts to improve have been effective.”
Andrew Reid, Cabinet member for Education and SEND at Suffolk County Council, said: “I would like to apologise to the child and her family for the distress we have caused. “We fully accept the findings of the ombudsman - our involvement has not been good enough.
“This ruling is not a surprise to us. We know the areas where we must do better and there are significant plans in place to improve what we do. Scrutinised at the highest level, officers from the Department for Education continue to challenge and hold us accountable on these plans.”
Lottie Winson
