Slough Borough CouncilA council must pay £6,500 in reimbursement to an autistic kid and their mom for failing to offer particular instructional provision (SEP), an ombudsman has discovered.
The Native Govt and Social Care Ombudsman mentioned Slough Borough Council was once at fault relating to the kid, referred to as Kid Y, and the mum, Ms X, and must apologise.
The ombudsman additionally mentioned the authority’s grievance dealing with brought about “avoidable misery and time and bother”.
The council apologised and mentioned it sincerely regretted its “shortcomings”.
The ombudsman mentioned it had failed to offer Y’s training, well being and care plan between September 2023 and July 2024.
The kid was once house schooled through the mum from June 2022 to September 2023, however was once then because of switch to a secondary college as a part of a council training, well being and care (EHC) plan.
However the mom instructed the council’s SEND (particular instructional wishes and disabilities) group that the college may just now not meet Y’s wishes.
The council mentioned the location could be reviewed in October and that Ms X’s most popular college had no to be had puts, however in spite of everything she didn’t ship her kid to the advisable college.
Months of proceedings from Ms X and correspondence between the related establishments endured till the next Summer season.
The ombudsman discovered that the council didn’t protected the training as a part of its care plan and brought about Ms X “confusion and frustration” as a result of its “deficient grievance reaction”.
The file mentioned the authority must “treatment the injustice” with a cost of £6,000 to replicate Y’s misplaced SEP, and one in every of £500 to Ms X to replicate her “avoidable misery and time and bother complaining”.
In a observation a council spokeswoman mentioned: “Whilst choice tuition was once supplied, we settle for it didn’t absolutely meet the necessities of Y’s EHC plan.
“We’re happy to notice that Y has been attending particular college placement since September 2024.”
She mentioned a “nice deal of enhancements and construction” had taken position within the final 18 months, and because the failings on this case the council had taken “corrective motion”, and made extra licensed tuition suppliers to be had “to make sure well timed supply of fortify”.
It had additionally “stepped forward readability” in its grievance processes, and was once “dedicated to bettering services and products for youngsters with EHC plans”.
The council was once up to now ordered to pay a mom £9,400 after her autistic son was once disadvantaged of training for greater than a yr.
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