Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about Education Health and Care Plan issues. We are unlikely to find fault and it is reasonable to expect her to appeal to the Tribunal.

The complaint

1. Mrs X, says the Council has failed to provide the educational support B, for whom she is their mother, needs.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. The First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) considers appeals against council decisions regarding special educational needs. We refer to it as the SEND Tribunal in this decision statement.
4. We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. We also cannot investigate a complaint if in doing so we would overlap with the role of a tribunal to decide something which has been or could have been referred to it to resolve using its own powers. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Mrs X.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mrs X says B has additional educational needs. She says she requested the Council assess and produce an Educational Health and Care Plan (EHC Plan) for B in 2023. In May 2023 the Council decided not to issue an EHC Plan. Mrs X appealed to the Tribunal. It considered the appeal in March 2024. It ordered the Council to make and maintain an EHC Plan.
8. The Council produced the EHC Plan in May 2024, within the Tribunal timescales.
9. Mrs X says she believes B needs driving lessons, materials to build a computer and gym membership. She says she asked the Council for a personal budget to pay for this. The Council refused.

Analysis

10. The Council only has to provide the educational support set out in the EHC Plan. We are unlikely to find fault in it not providing driving lessons, materials to build a computer and gym membership, as these are not set out in the EHC Plan.
11. We will not investigate if the EHC Plan meets B’s needs because it is reasonable for Mrs X to appeal the EHC Plan to the Tribunal if she believes the EHC Plan should be worded differently.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because we are unlikely to find fault and it is reasonable to expect her to appeal to the Tribunal.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman