A Teesside family has received a £2,000 pay-out from a council after an 11-month delay to provide respite care for an autistic child.

Having moved to the area in February 2019, the anonymous family say Redcar and Cleveland Council's actions caused "avoidable stress" and had a negative impact on the mum's health conditions and wellbeing. The unnamed youngster, known as Child Y, went without full-time education for over a year and it took the council 11 months to organise overnight respite care for them and their parents.

Now, having already paid out an undisclosed amount for the loss of education, the local authority has agreed to pay a further £2,000 following a Local Council and Social Care Ombudsman investigation. Having initially offered a £1,000 compensation payment, the child's mum, Mrs X, who also has a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and other medical conditions, declined the offer as she says she considered the amount to be an insult.

READ MORE:Disabled woman slams housing provider after she claims workmen 'ripped up' her floor and are now refusing to replace it

Following the investigation, the figure was doubled as it did "not adequately address the injustice caused to both" Child Y and their mum the ombudsman report outlines how the council initiated a Child in Need plan in March 2019.

By September a need for overnight respite care for the child was identified. Two months later Mrs X complained to the council for not providing her child with adequate SEN education and for failing to provide respite care.

It wasn't until January 2020 that the youngster attended their first respite care visit - and attended further visits in March and April. At this time the council still hadn't completed it's own investigation into the shortfall.

The ombudsman report states: "The stage two report said the investigator found no evidence of significant discussions about the need for respite provision until six months after Mr and Mrs X moved to the area. The investigator said they would have expected this to be a key area to focus on due to the complexities of the family situation and the previous service provision made by the local authority where Mr and Mrs X used to live.

"The stage two investigation found the council did not address the issue of respite care in a timely manner." However, the provider ended its respite care package for Child Y on 28 April 2020 following an incident involving Child Y.

The child went without SEN education until September 2020 where they were placed in an independent specialist school. While the council paid out for the initial delay, which it says was due to a lack of provision in the area, the ombudsman did not uphold the family's further complaint that the adequacy of the education the child received.

Regarding the respite care, the investigator found the £1,000 offer to Mrs X was appropriate, however it didn't address the injustice caused to the child. The report states: "This is because Child Y was also affected by the delay in providing respite care for the same 11-month period.

"The injustice to Child Y is the distress and uncertainty caused by the missed opportunity to receive respite care for 11 months. Mrs X says Child Y missed out on social interaction with other children. The CIN records also show Child Y wanted to go out and do things without their parents."

The ombudsman also found a delay in the stage-two investigation. Redcar and Cleveland Council agreed to further apologise, remind staff to adhere to timeframes in the children's statutory complaints process, and consider using notification/decision letters to parents to clarify provision agreed as part of Child in Need meetings.

A spokesperson for Redcar and Cleveland Police said: "Our highly dedicated officers, along with other providers right across the borough, are committed to ensuring the needs of all our children - including those with special educational needs - are met. During the last two and a half years there have been unprecedented challenges, not just for us but for providers of services which we rely on to deliver services for our children.

"One area that has posed the biggest challenge has been the impact of the pandemic particularly on the care service industry and the staff that they rely on to deliver services, many of who we work in partnership with. We accept the Ombudsman’s decision and wherever we do fall short in our response we will do all we can to provide a resolution."

READ NEXT: