The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about educational provision and placements because it was reasonable for Ms X to use her right to appeal to the First-Tier (Special Educational Needs and Disability) Tribunal.
The complaint
Ms X complains the Council failed to properly consider her requested amendments to her child’s (Y) Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. She also says the Council consulted schools using an inaccurate plan and has named an unsuitable school placement.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone has a right of appeal, reference or review to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended) The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) considers appeals against council decisions regarding special educational needs. We refer to it as the Tribunal in this decision statement.
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Parents who are unhappy with the contents of an EHC Plan have a right to appeal to the Tribunal. It is the mechanism set up by Parliament for parents to challenge such decisions. The Tribunal can direct changes to the EHC plan. We expect parents to use this right unless it is not reasonable for them to do so.
Y has an EHC Plan maintained by the Council. Ms X is unhappy with the provision and setting provided by the Council. Section F and Section I of an EHC Plan specify the provision and placement and are appealable to the Tribunal. It would have been reasonable for Ms X to appeal to the Tribunal if she was unhappy with the content of the EHC plan. Therefore, we cannot investigate Ms X’s complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because Ms X has the right to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) and it would be reasonable for her to do so.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman