North Yorkshire County Council’s struggle to recruit an educational psychologist highlights a wider problem faced by local authorities across the UK, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman says.

The North Yorkshire case saw the council issue a boy with dyslexia and social, emotional and mental health difficulties an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan nearly four months late, an investigation by the Ombudsman found.

During the investigation, the council told the Ombudsman it had struggled to recruit educational psychologists and had gone out to four rounds of recruitment, despite offering higher than average salaries. The local authority said it was having to rely on agency staff.

The council eventually issued a delayed EHC Plan despite the educational psychologist never meeting the boy in person or virtually. Instead, the plan was produced by the educational psychologist gathering information from a teacher and speaking to the boy’s mum over the phone.

The Ombudsman’s investigation found the council took between three and four months too long to issue the boy’s EHC Plan. The investigation also found fault with the way the council communicated with the family.

Michael King, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, said that 70% of other councils were having similar problems.

‘The problems faced by North Yorkshire County Council are reflected in the investigations we conduct into councils up and down the country – and the very real effects this is having on so many children and young adults with additional needs,’ said Mr King.

‘In this case the mother has told me that her son’s mental health worsened because of the delays, to the extent he was vomiting before school because of his unsupported anxiety.

‘I welcome the strides the council is already making in trying to improve its recruitment and retention issues and hope to see an improved picture when it reports back to me on its progress.’

North Yorkshire County Council’s assistant director for inclusion, Jane le Sage, said: ‘Requests for assessments and SEND services have increased significantly following the Covid-19 pandemic and this has meant that there have been some issues regarding communication with families and the timeliness of the statutory assessment process.

‘We accept the Ombudsman’s findings and accept that in this case our performance not been good enough. We apologise for any distress experienced by the family.

‘Appropriate, timely action has been taken to improve our performance by strengthening the capacity of the SEND casework and administrative teams, together with further professional development of staff to ensure expected standards are understood and maintained.’