Herts County Council pays hundreds for schooling failures
Herts County Council agreed to pay £ 4,500 for not providing an autistic child with an adequate education for over a year.
The law requires local authorities to provide adequate educational opportunities for all school-age children who may not receive them, unless provision has been made for them.
However, an investigation by the local government ombudsman found that HCC did not do this in a boy with special needs – including autism – after a stay in a mental health department in 2018.
The boy’s mother initially complained that her son had “fallen further behind” and said the worrying situation between July 2019 and September 2020 affected the family.
According to the ombudsman’s report, the psychiatric department had recommended that he receive special training in autism spectrum disorders with the support of his parents.
The boy received two one-hour home tutoring sessions a week from the city council’s educational support team, but stayed in the same mainstream school.
The council had stated that it could not find an alternative place and was trying to make provisions for the boy at school.
She consulted a school for children with social, emotional and mental health problems – which said it could not meet his needs – but the Ombudsman said it was the council’s fault for not consulting any of the other five schools.
HCC has also been brought to justice for failing to conduct a rehabilitation program after the boy reportedly stopped looking at his educational support for a medically absent teacher.
As a result, he fell behind in school, according to the ombudsman.
The mother also complained of a delay in assigning a social worker and granting direct payments through September 2019.
Following the investigation, the council agreed to pay her an additional £ 400 to reflect the hardship and anxiety caused by the time it took to provide a social worker and relief measure.
An HCC spokesman said: “We take the Ombudsman’s findings very seriously and, if we have made a mistake, work hard to understand why it happened, how we can correct it and prevent it from happening again.
“Following this investigation, Hertfordshire County Council recognizes and apologizes for this family’s difficulties.”
