Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to carry out an Education, Health and Care needs assessment. This is because it would be reasonable for Mrs X to appeal to a tribunal.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about the Council’s decision not to carry out an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment for her child, Y.
2. Mrs X says Y is out of school because their current placement is unsuitable which has impacted their well-being. Mrs X wants the Council to provide an EHC plan and an appropriate school placement for Y.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. 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).
5. 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.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. I will not investigate this complaint because Mrs X can appeal to the SEND Tribunal. It is reasonable to expect Mrs X to use her right of appeal because the SEND Tribunal is the appropriate body to review the Council’s decision and is free to use.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because she has a right of appeal to the SEND Tribunal placing it out of our jurisdiction.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman