Mrs B complained that there were delays in Wrexham County Borough Council preparing an individual development plan (“IDP” – a plan detailing a child’s additional learning needs and the support they require) for her daughter, that her daughter did not receive education between February and July 2023 and there was a delay in securing a school placement.
The assessment of this complaint identified that it had taken 14 months to prepare the IDP which exceeded the expected time frame of 12 weeks. The complaint response Mrs B had received from the Council said there was no evidence the timescales for putting the IDP together were excessive. However, it did not explain why it was determined that this time frame was reasonable despite being significantly over 12 weeks.
The Council agreed to issue a further complaint response to Mrs B, acknowledging the time taken to complete the IDP exceeded 12 weeks and providing further detail as to why this time frame was reasonable and appropriate. The Ombudsman considered this action was reasonable and closed the case on this basis.