Latest news with #LocalGovernmentOmbudsman
BBC News
29-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Slough Borough Council SEND assessment delays criticised in report
"Significant delays" by a council in assessing a child's special educational needs caused his mother "prolonged injustice", a government watchdog has Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman ordered the Slough Borough Council to pay her £1,000 for delays and lack of report said the council's faults had caused her "significant distress and frustration".The BBC has approached the council for comment. The mother, named as Ms X in the ombudsman's report, asked the council to update her son B's education health and care plan (EHCP) in March is a legal document reviewed annually that sets out what a council has to do to meet a child's special educational wanted the council to update B's EHCP with information from a private occupational therapist's assessment she had sourced, and asked if it could reimburse her for the X then complained "shortly after" about the time the council had taken to update B's EHCP after a review in October 2023, and asked for a personal budget to pay for his occupational therapy. 'Especially severe' The council replied that B's annual review would take place in April, that she could discuss a personal budget then, and that it might need to take 14 weeks to reassess his council also said it had "not yet decided" whether to reimburse Ms X for the private occupational therapist's assessment.B's annual review took place in April and the council wrote to Ms X in June saying it had prepared an amended plan, that it would reimburse her for the occupational therapist's assessment and reassess B's response to her complaint, Slough Borough Council said it would consider her request for a personal accepted there had been delays in updating B's plan and securing a decision around the private occupational therapist the council did issue an updated ECHP in September 2024 the reassessment had still not taken place – and was ongoing at the time of the ombudsman's decision in March this council 'said waiting for the outcome of the private OT's review, had delayed this consideration'.The ombudsman ruled this delay was "especially severe" and the the council should pay Ms X £ addition, the ombudsman said there was a "lack of communication! from the council in explaining its decision whether to award Ms X a personal budget, and that there was a delay in deciding whether to reimburse her for the private said the council should pay Ms X a further £250 for these. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Lewisham mum of child too anxious to go to school wins £1.5k compensation
A mum of a child too anxious to attend school has been awarded £1,500 from a South London council after it failed to arrange alternative education. The unnamed girl, known only as B, missed out on classes for six months due to Lewisham Council's delays in offering her replacement tuition elsewhere. The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) said the situation caused the girl and her family 'distress, frustration and uncertainty', in a report from February. B's mum, known only as Dr X, informed the council that her daughter was unable to attend school due to anxiety in November 2023. The girl's school offered her mindfulness and lunchtime support session if she could attend. But alternative arrangements for her education in the meantime were not put in place. In December 2023, the school's attendance officer sent a letter to Dr X warning her she could be taken to court if her child continued to skip classes. Later the same month, B's doctor informed the school that she had a diagnosis of autism, which was a potential cause of her non-attendance at school. Lewisham told the LGO it took steps to arrange alternative education for B upon receiving the doctor's evidence. But it did not manage to secure replacement tuition for the girl until April 2024, four months later. As compensation, the LGO ordered the council to pay Dr X £1,500 and remind attendance staff of their responsibility to provide education for children who don't attend school full-time. The LGO said: 'We have found the council at fault for a delay in providing access to suitable provision after receiving a medical letter. This caused distress, uncertainty and frustration for Dr X and her child. 'The council has agreed to apologise, make a symbolic financial payment and remind its staff of the Ombudsman's guidance on how we expect councils to fulfil their responsibilities to provide education for children who do not attend school full-time.' A Lewisham Council spokesperson said: 'We have reviewed the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman's decision regarding Dr X's complaint and accept the findings. £We have apologised to the family for the disruption to their child's education, and acknowledge that we should have done better. 'We are committed to learning from this experience and are actively reviewing our attendance and hospital outreach programme policies and processes to ensure that children facing health challenges receive the support they need without unnecessary delays. "Safeguarding the wellbeing and educational development of all children in the borough remains our top priority.'
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Mum of girl too anxious for school wins £1.5k from South London council for failing to provide education
A mum of a child too anxious to attend school has been awarded £1,500 from a South London council after it failed to arrange alternative education. The unnamed girl, known only as B, missed out on classes for six months due to Lewisham Council's delays in offering her replacement tuition elsewhere. The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) said the situation caused the girl and her family 'distress, frustration and uncertainty', in a report from February. B's mum, known only as Dr X, informed the council that her daughter was unable to attend school due to anxiety in November 2023. The girl's school offered her mindfulness and lunchtime support session if she could attend. But alternative arrangements for her education in the meantime were not put in place. READ MORE: 44-storey South London tower confirmed with 'heart of community' food court bulldozed for 900 homes READ MORE: The South London neighbourhood 'that feels like a village' and where everyone is 'very friendly' In December 2023, the school's attendance officer sent a letter to Dr X warning her she could be taken to court if her child continued to skip classes. Later the same month, B's doctor informed the school that she had a diagnosis of autism, which was a potential cause of her non-attendance at school. Lewisham told the LGO it took steps to arrange alternative education for B upon receiving the doctor's evidence. But it did not manage to secure replacement tuition for the girl until April 2024, four months later. As compensation, the LGO ordered the council to pay Dr X £1,500 and remind attendance staff of their responsibility to provide education for children who don't attend school full-time. The LGO said: "We have found the council at fault for a delay in providing access to suitable provision after receiving a medical letter. This caused distress, uncertainty and frustration for Dr X and her child. "The council has agreed to apologise, make a symbolic financial payment and remind its staff of the Ombudsman's guidance on how we expect councils to fulfil their responsibilities to provide education for children who do not attend school full-time." A Lewisham Council spokesperson said: "We have reviewed the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman's decision regarding Dr X's complaint and accept the findings. We have apologised to the family for the disruption to their child's education, and acknowledge that we should have done better. "We are committed to learning from this experience and are actively reviewing our attendance and hospital outreach programme policies and processes to ensure that children facing health challenges receive the support they need without unnecessary delays. Safeguarding the wellbeing and educational development of all children in the borough remains our top priority." Got a story? Email Don't miss out on the biggest local stories. Sign up to our MySouthLondon newsletter HERE for all the latest daily news and more.
