Suffolk County Council pays out more than £340,000 to families as children's services drive complaints increase

A council has paid out more than £340,000 to families as children's services drive an increase in complaints.

Suffolk County Council's audit committee members will discuss the authority's report on Friday, looking into the comments, compliments and complaints it received in the year leading up to March.

The annual report showed some 1,501 complaints were registered with the council during that period, an increase from the 1,228 the year before.

A council spokesperson said committee members would provide independent oversight of the complaints on Friday, which also included those made to the Local Government Ombudsman.

They said: “It is extremely important that we keep a close eye on the number of compliments and complaints that we receive for all our services."

Of the total complaints, the majority were made against the authority's Children and Young People's (CYP) directorate, which saw an increase to 877, up from 626.

Most of these related to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and included delays in completing or reviewing education, health and care plans (EHCPs), stated provision not being secured, disputes regarding placements and communication which was either lacking or poor.

As many as 84 per cent of these were fully or partially upheld, making up nearly all of the council's compensation to families, with £344,076 paid out as a result of complaints relating to SEND.

In total, the council paid out £351,626 in compensation.

There are around 25,000 children in Suffolk with SEND, with the council seeing a continued increase in demand for its services, having delivered some 10,625 EHCPs as of March, 2,289 more than the year before.

The report said the increase in complaints, particularly in children's services, was a 'cause for concern', with more work needed despite improvements in handling and management in recent years.

In contrast to complaint figures, the county council also saw an increase in the number of compliments made to the authority, particularly in children's services, with 222 received during the year, 53 more than the previous year.

Similarly encouraging, the number of complaints relating to adult social care decreased to 284 despite as many as 14,426 people receiving long-term support.

The spokesperson said: "Whilst it is good news that complaints have fallen in adult social care, the increase in complaints within SEND services is a significant concern.

“It is well known that we are working hard to address three of the biggest contributors to complaints about SEND – the quality of education, health and care plans, timeliness and poor communication with parents or carers.

"Our staff review each complaint and ensure we learn from it and change the way we do things.

“Changes to the way we deliver SEND services with our partners in health and education settings remain our number one focus and we accept that, sadly, we don’t always get it right.”

Despite this, there was an increase in complaints made about mental health, learning disabilities and autism, which the report said was being investigated.