The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about alternative educational provision for Miss X’s child from May to July 2025. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant our further involvement.
The complaint
Miss X said the Council failed to make alternative educational provision when her child was unable to attend school.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Complaint 24 000 411 considered the educational provision for the child up to May 2025.
The correspondence I have seen stated the child’s school made a referral to the Council on 9 June 2025 because he was not attending. It stated the Council made an offer on 30 June 2025 of online tuition based away from the classroom, but at the child’s school. It stated this location was because the child was at risk of social isolation. The correspondence stated Ms X enrolled the child at another school for September 2025 and the Council ended its online offer because it was near the end of the school year, with the child needing to spend some time at the new school. If we were to investigate this period, it is unlikely we would find the Council failed to make an offer of alternative provision within 15 school days of the referral from the child’s school. It is also unlikely we would find fault with the Council withdrawing the provision in July 2025 after Miss X enrolled her child at another school ready to start in September.
Final decision
We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman