A MOTHER has suffered ‘adverse impact’ because Bracknell Forest Council did not fulfil its duty in providing support for her SEND child, an investigation has found.

The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) investigated a claim from the mother – known as Mrs X – who struggled to get her daughter to attend school regularly over a five-month period.

A continued plan to get her to daughter, G, to reintegrate into school rather than consider specialist schooling, meant the council did not fulfil its duty to provide alternatives, the Ombudsman has ruled.

Mrs X said that this had a ‘significant impact’ on her daughter’s wellbeing and education, as well as causing her ‘avoidable inconvenience’.

The issue lies in how Bracknell Forest Council, despite evidence of an autism diagnosis and lack of attendance, did not consider whether there was an alternative to the ‘reintegration’ plan.

Mrs X’s daughter, referred to as G, had her attendance decline from October 2022. In Year 5 of primary school, G was said to be suffering with ‘school-based anxiety’, which prompted Mrs X to contact the school in January 2023.

School staff, council officials, and Mrs X decided to give G a reduced timetable for reintegration, and also discussed possibilities of SEND education. Over the next few months, it was agreed to moderately increase G’s timetable to near full-time.

However, by mid-March, Mrs X raised concerns with the school about her increased difficulty in getting G to school. G had been diagnosed with autism, and Mrs X planned to apply to for an Education, Health and Care plan - a key document for SEND children which outline their support needed.

By April, the council was aware that there may be an issue with getting G to return to school, and of her diagnosis. But at this point, it was still decided to pursue a plan to reintegrate G back to school.

The LGO said that this was a fault as the council ‘did not consider and formally record its decision about whether it needed to provide alternative education provision’. This was especially wrong given the evidence of diagnosis and a lack of attendance.

This caused an injustice to Mrs X, who does not know whether her daughter had missed out on an education offer for the period. Bracknell Forest Council has agreed to pay £300 to Mrs X following the investigation.