The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this late complaint about the Council failing to update Mrs X’s child’s Education Health and Care Plan properly since 2018. Mrs X was or ought reasonably to have been aware of this matter much more than a year before she approached us.
The complaint
Mrs X said the Council failed to update her child’s Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan properly since 2018.
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 late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mrs X said the Council failed to amend her child’s EHC Plan properly after 2018. The Council’s final response to her complaint accepted it failed to carry out amendments it agreed in 2020. Given a review of the child’s EHC Plan was due annually at least, any failure to update the EHC Plan, or to hold a review meeting at which that would have become clear, would have been obvious much more than12 months before Mrs X approached us. I note the last review meeting before Mrs X moved out of the Council's area was in June 2023, which was still more than a year before she approached us.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is late and there is no good reason to exercise the discretion available to consider these matters now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman