Northamptonshire family awarded £3,350 over council's special education failings

A family will receive thousands of pounds in compensation after an ombudsman ruled that their local council failed to promptly offer alternative schooling to a girl with special educational needs.

The pupil missed out on formal education for almost a year, which resulted in an “academic decline” and affected the 10-year-old’s “personal development”, said the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO).

North Northamptonshire Council said it accepted the findings and apologised for the failings during “what must have been a very challenging and distressing time”.

The council was ordered to pay a total of £3,350 to recognise the lack of educational provision from January to May 2023 and its failure to communicate effectively.

The primary school pupil, referred to as ‘Y’ in the report, is autistic and experiences separation anxiety.

In September 2022 her school asked the council to carry out an education health and care (EHC) assessment as she had not been able to attend any formal lessons since June, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The council issued an EHC plan in March 2023, confirming that the girl would be enrolled on an independent special secondary school from September 2024.

An alternative education package, including home tutoring, was put in place in May with the plan to gradually increase intensity over the 15 months in between formal schooling.

The Ombudsman found a six-week delay in the council issuing the girl’s final EHC plan, which was a “fault”. It also found that she did not receive any education or support from the beginning of January to the end of May 2023 which was an “injustice”.

The report wrote that the council had a “lack of understanding of its responsibilities".

The girl's mother "was increasingly frustrated by the lack of accountability of the council’s [special educational needs and disabilities] services. She felt distressed by not being able to challenge the council’s actions,” it added.

Council leader Jason Smithers apologised and added: "We will continue to support the family, to ensure that an appropriate education is available which best meets the child’s needs.

“We will also take the learning from this case and use this to ensure further staff training and revisit our policies and procedures to ensure that these are appropriately updated to avoid any repeat of these issues.”

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