Surrey County Council must pay £18K to family after highly critical Ombudsman Report
Surrey County Council has been ordered to pay £18,400 in compensation to the family of a severely autistic child after a highly critical report from the Local Government Ombudsman. The report criticised all aspects of the County Council's handling of the case, which concluded that there was fault by the County Council and that an injustice had taken place.
Cllr Hazel Watson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, said today:
"This Ombudsman Report makes very concerning reading. Surrey County Council failed to provide the support needed by a severely autistic child and his family. The report demonstrates multiple failures by the County Council in terms of assessing the needs of the child, assessing risk, providing support when needed, delayed decision-making and poor complaints handling.
"The Report highlights systemic weaknesses in the County Council's processes and decision-making. As a member of the Improvement Board for Children's Services, I am aware that improvements have been made in the service more recently. But nevertheless, I am calling on the County Council to assure myself and residents that processes are now in place to prevent similar incidents occurring again in Surrey. I also request an assurance that the County Council's assessment, decision-making systems, processes and support to children and families have improved so that other families get the support that they need on a timely basis."
A copy of the report can be found here: