Oxfordshire County Council (24 015 109)
Category : Education > School transport
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 04 Feb 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council not providing Mrs X’s daughter with transport to alternative provision. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
- The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mrs X, complained the Council has refused to provide her daughter (Y) with transport to alternative provision. The Council has said because Y’s school has arranged for her to attend the alternative provision, the Council is not responsible providing transport. It has therefore refused Mrs X’s request.
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 and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Councils must provide transport to alternative provision it has arranged under Section 19 of the Education Act 1996 - if the relevant criteria for transport eligibility are met. But where a school commissions alternative provision, the Council will generally not be under a duty to provide transport. This is because the Council has not commissioned the provision under its Section 19 duty.
- In this case, the school Y attends has arranged the alternative provision, not the Council. This means the Council is not required to provide transport.
- There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision to warrant us becoming involved. We will not therefore start an investigation into Mrs X’s complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision not to provide transport to alternative provision.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman