The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s response to the actions of a school. This is because by law we cannot consider the school’s actions themselves.
The complaint
The complainant, who I will refer to as Mr B, complains about the Council’s response to disability discrimination by his daughter’s school.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We cannot investigate complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(b), as amended) The courts have said we can decide not to investigate a complaint about any action by a council concerning a matter which is outside our jurisdiction. (R (on the application of M) v Commissioner for Local Administration [2006] EHWCC 2847 (Admin))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr B says his daughter’s school discriminated against her on the grounds of disability. He took the matter to the First Tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) which found in his favour. Mr B complains the Council failed to take action in response to the discrimination both before and after the Tribunal issued its Order.
We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint. The law says we cannot investigate what happens in schools. The actions of staff and governors fall outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction. We could not investigate the Council’s response without considering the school’s actions, which the law prevents us from doing.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because it relates to matters which themselves fall outside our jurisdiction.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman