Letter: complaint to the LA

Send this when the Local Authority has missed deadlines, failed to deliver provision, or handled your case badly, and informal chasing has not worked. It starts the Local Authority’s formal complaints process.

You usually need to go through this process before the Ombudsman will look at your complaint, so this is an important step, not a wasted one. Mark it clearly as a formal complaint, list what went wrong with dates, and say what you want the Local Authority to do to put it right. This applies in England; check your nation if elsewhere. This is information, not legal advice.

Here is the template.

To: [LA COMPLAINTS TEAM / CORPORATE COMPLAINTS EMAIL]. Date: [DATE]. Dear [NAME OR “Complaints Team”].

Formal complaint about the handling of [CHILD’S NAME]’s EHC plan. Child’s name: [CHILD’S FULL NAME]. Date of birth: [DD/MM/YYYY]. Your reference: [REFERENCE NUMBER].

I am making a formal complaint about how [LA NAME] has handled [CHILD’S NAME]’s case. I would like this dealt with under your formal complaints procedure.

What went wrong: 1. [ISSUE 1 WITH DATE, e.g. On DATE I requested an assessment. You did not tell me your decision within 6 weeks.] 2. [ISSUE 2 WITH DATE, e.g. The final plan was due by DATE but has still not been issued.] 3. [ISSUE 3 WITH DATE, e.g. Provision in Section F has not been delivered since DATE.]

The impact on my child and family: [DESCRIBE PLAINLY, e.g. CHILD’S NAME has been without support for X months, has fallen behind, and has become distressed. I have had to take time off work to manage this.]

What I want you to do: [E.g. issue the final plan by a named date]; [E.g. put the missing provision in place and make up what was missed]; [E.g. acknowledge the failings and explain how you will prevent them happening again].

Please confirm you have received this complaint, tell me which stage of your process it is at, and let me know when I can expect a full response. If I am not satisfied with your response, or if you do not respond within a reasonable time, I will refer my complaint to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Yours faithfully, [YOUR FULL NAME], parent of [CHILD’S NAME]. Contact: [PHONE] / [EMAIL].