A COMPLAINT about special educational needs support thrown out by Bracknell Forest Council (BFC) bosses should have been investigated, a watchdog has ruled.
Earlier this year a Bracknell mother took issue with BFC’s refusal to consider a complaint about support for her disabled son.
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The son attended a mainstream school but following some time in hospital, the mother sought home tuition for her child until a specialist placement could be found.
But in February 2017 BFC refused to assess her son to work out what level of support he needed, leading to the mother appealing to the Special Educational Needs Tribunal.
The Tribunal ordered BFC to carry out an education and health care assessment, which it did 15 weeks after being told to.
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Full-time education with therapy began for the son in September 2018, with a full education and health care plan put together a month later.
But the mother complained to BFC in March 2019 after outlining more than 20 issues listed in her grievance.
Some of these 20 problems included BFC’s refusal to asses her son, a delay in finalising the plan following the tribunal hearing, and more.
BFC refused to investigate the complaint, claiming these issues should have been raised during the tribunal process.
The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO), a watchdog which investigates complaints against local authorities, said it could not consider some of the grievances because they had already been considered at the tribunal.
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But the watchdog said BFC was wrong not to investigate the complaint matters which could not be determined by the tribunal.
A report read: “The council did not technically follow all statutory requirements in its handling [of the mother’s case]... however, I find this did not cause any significant injustice.”
Rachel Morgan, Assistant Director, Education and Learning at BFC, said: “As a local authority we are fully committed to ensuring we follow statutory requirements in relation to children and young people with special educational needs.”
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