Families of children with Special Educational Needs in Hackney who are unhappy with the time the council took to complete their Education Health and Care Plans, could have their complaints reconsidered by the council after the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman identified significant faults in the council’s handling of two separate cases.

London Borough of Hackney has been criticised by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman for the lengthy delays in providing support for two children with Special Educational Needs (SEN).

Councils should normally take no longer than 20 weeks to complete an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan for children with SEN, but in the first case, a boy with autism only received his plan after 69 weeks. And in the second, there was a 48-week delay in providing a plan for a young boy with Down’s syndrome.

In both cases the boys’ families have had to make significant efforts to ensure the council provides the services they are entitled to.

The Ombudsman has criticised the council for a number of faults, including the way it considered whether the boys should be assessed when notified they may have SEN. The Ombudsman also criticised the council’s failure to adhere to statutory timescales for completing EHC Plans, and restricting access to services by using waiting lists for funding. It has recommended the council consider other families’ complaints where there have been delays in the process.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said: