Council had backlog of nearly 1,500 support plans to review for children with SEND, Ombudsman finds

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) has highlighted “systemic SEND issues” at Rochdale Council, after finding the authority had a backlog of nearly 1,500 support plans to review for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The Ombudsman revealed that the number of cases where the council had completed annual reviews and not issued an updated Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan increased from more than 800 in June 2024 to just over 1,200 in September 2024, and was more than 1,300 in October 2024.

To ensure children and young people with an EHC Plan are having their needs met properly, their plans must be reviewed annually. Councils must then tell parents, following a review, whether it intends to ‘amend, maintain or cease’ that plan.

The law states local authorities must then issue a final plan within 12 weeks of the review meeting, and within eight weeks of sending the amendment notice.

When a family complained to the LGSCO that their child had not had an updated EHC Plan for a number of years, the Ombudsman asked Rochdale about its records. The council admitted:

• It had more than 1,400 cases in which it failed to tell parents of its decision to amend, maintain or cease an EHC Plan within four weeks of the annual review meeting;
• Of these, the council decided to maintain or cease the plans in 600 cases. This meant 600 families had to wait longer than they should have if they wished to appeal the council’s decision to the Tribunal;
• Of the 300 cases in which the council decided to amend the plan, nearly 100 children and young people were still waiting for a draft plan after six months.

To remedy the injustice caused, the council has agreed to produce an “action plan for improvement”, and look at the measures it is already taking to assess whether these are working.

The LGSCO added: “The action plan should be brought to the relevant councillor committee to ensure timescales are being met.”

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Ms Amerdeep Somal said: “When we investigated the previous complaint, the council told us about the significant steps it is taking to improve its Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Service.

“While I appreciate this will take some time to have an effect, it is clear from the information the council has shared with me that these improvements are not making a difference quickly enough.

“Each of the 1,400 cases my report has highlighted represents a child or young person potentially not having their needs properly met, and their families being denied the chance to challenge the council through the Tribunal. And the longer it takes for the council to identify exactly what support that child needs, the longer those needs are not fully met."

She added: “I have asked the council to create an action plan to identify the further steps it will now take to accelerate the improvements it is making, and reduce the time families have to wait.

“I am pleased the council has accepted my recommendations and hope this will ensure children and young people in Rochdale are better served in future.”

Sharon Hubber, Director of Children’s Services at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “We are very sorry that some children and young people and their families have experienced delays accessing these services.

“Our children and young people deserve to be supported and encouraged to reach their full potential and, while the majority do have their education and health care plans reviewed on time, we fully understand the frustrations felt by these families and accept these are sometimes too long.”

She added: “Significant measures have been taken to address this issue as the number of requests for these services continues to grow, not just in Rochdale but across the country.

“This includes increased capacity in our education, health and care (EHC) team and the implementation of a SEND advice line to support local families.

“A great deal of work has been undertaken since this report was published. An action plan is also due to be reviewed at our health and scrutiny committee.”

Lottie Winson