Councils struggling to meet SEND deadline, ombudsman warns

Speaking at an event in London, Michael King revealed his office has now investigated nearly 140 cases in detail - upholding 80 per cent of complaints.

All children with existing SEN statements should be transferred to the new plans by next month, but King said the ombudsman's office is seeing "significant delays in the process" - sometimes by up to 90 weeks.

Other problems regularly seen by investigators include failing to involve parents and young people properly in the decision-making process, not gathering sufficient evidence to inform decisions, and a lack of proper forward planning when young people move between key educational stages.

"We know many authorities are struggling to meet the April deadline for transferring statements, and I want to stress they need to ensure provision remains in place if transfers to EHC plans have not occurred by the deadline," he said.

"In the cases that come to us, we are seeing worrying patterns of delay, inadequate evidence gathering and poor administration and this is having a significant impact on the children and families the new plans were designed to help.

"While we recognise the increasing pressure on children's services departments, we will continue to make decisions based on the law, guidance and rights and not on diminishing budgets."

A report by the ombudsman into the first 100 complaints it received about children's EHC plans, published in October last year, found that families were experiencing delays and a range of issues, including a failure to identify suitable school places and confusion within local authorities about what the law requires.

EHC plans were introduced in the Children and Families Act 2014 with the aim of providing better joined-up support for children with SEND from birth to 25 years.