Barnsley Council apologises after youngster “missed out on certain special educational and social care provision”

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman investigated a complaint from a family that BMBC had finalised a youngster’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan “without the agreement” of their parents.

The complainant, referred to in the ombudsman’s ruling as Mr X, also complained that the council “failed to issue the plan within the statutory time-scales”.

EHC Plans are a legally-binding document outlining a youngster up the age of 25’s special educational, health, and social care needs.

The ombudsman states that Mr X’s daughter, B, has Downs Syndrome and a number of health conditions.

In June 2019, Mr X complained to the council about B’s transfer review process, transition to adulthood and the council’s “failure to progress actions agreed during a mediation meeting that took place in July 2018”.

The ombudsman report states: “B’s transition assessment and CIN [Child in Need] assessment from September 2018 confirmed B had identifiable needs that would require adult social care support.

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“However, processes at the time meant the adult social care team rejected and closed two transition referrals from children’s social services.

“This was because B had no “active” support service in place and it was not accepting referrals before someone turned 18 years old at the time.

“The IIO [independent investigator] found that this meant B’s transition to adult social services was effectively blocked, which caused B to suffer a ‘cliff edge’ in services.”

The ombudsman ordered the council to apologise in writing to Mr X, B, and B’s mother, Ms Y, pay Mr X £400, pay Ms Y £400, and pay B £700.

The council was also ordered to pay B a further £1,200 for the loss of SALT (speech and language therapy) provision.

BMBC has made improvements, including investing in its EHC hub; creating an annual review strategy; and removing the stipulations that affected B’s transition.

Mel John-Ross, executive director for children’s services at BMBC, said: “We accept the Ombudsman’s ruling and take full responsibility.

“We have written to Mr X, Ms Y and B to apologise and will make compensation payments to all three individuals for the distress caused.

“In direct response to the Ombudsman’s findings, we have implemented learning and improvements to the service by investing in our Education, Health and Care hub, which manages compliance with the statutory processes and timescales. We have created an Annual Review Strategy to identify good practice guidance and reviewed and updated our Preparing for Adulthood Transition Policy.

“We have also established a Preparation for Adulthood Steering Group, which is responsible for leading the implementation of the Preparation for Adulthood Strategy. It is also responsible for ensuring better coordination between teams, monitoring the quality and range of support for children and young people with SEND and ensuring Preparation for Adulthood is embedded in council and partner policies.

“We have implemented an Engagement and Participation Strategy to ensure the voice of children, young people and parents and carers are embedded in the local area SEND system.

“In addition, staff have been reminded of the importance of mediation meetings and attending these to remain compliant with the SEND Code of Practice through training and supervision.”