SEND pupils denied therapy due to council failings

Two brothers with special educational needs were left without speech and language therapy for more than a year due to council failings, an ombudsman's report said.

It found that "many" other children in a cohort of 400 receiving the service were also affected by delays because of mismanagement by Buckinghamshire Council.

Amerdeep Clarke, local government and social care ombudsman, said the authority "made wholescale changes... without ensuring it could meet the needs of these children".

Buckinghamshire Council said it fully accepted the findings of the report and apologised to the mother of the two children affected.

One brother missed over half of his required speech therapy and nearly all occupational therapy as set out in his education, health and care plan (EHCP) between September 2023 and December 2024, the report said.

His sibling also went without his support, and delays in updating his plan left his mother unable to legally challenge the provision he was entitled to.

The ombudsman found the problems were partly due to the council's therapy provider ending a sub-contract in early 2024, potentially affecting around 400 children across Buckinghamshire.

Its investigation found the council failed to properly consider the impact of withdrawing the contract, had no back-up plan, and failed to step in to ensure those children still got the help they were owed quickly enough.

Carl Jackson, cabinet member for education and children's services, said up to 400 children were receiving treatment with the sub-contracted service but this was not the number who experienced delays.

"Our NHS partners wrote to all families affected at the time to explain the changes and confirm how therapy would continue to be delivered," he said.

Buckinghamshire Council has agreed to apologise to the boys' mother and pay a symbolic £1,000 to recognise what had gone wrong.

It said it would publish an action plan within the next three months to explain the steps it will take to review EHCPs and prevent a similar situation happening again.

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