Education improvements 'a work in progress'

A council says it has resolved serious problems in the way it provides alternative education for children who cannot go to school.

Surrey County Council spends about £15m a year on alternative provision for children who are excluded, too unwell to attend school, or waiting for specialist placements.

An online audit last summer found systems were not working properly, with staff unclear about their responsibilities, patchy records, and children's placements not being regularly checked.

All 12 actions resulting from the review have now been completed, the council says, but an Audit and Scrutiny report admits the most basic problems won't be fully implemented until next year.

Legally the council has a duty to make sure children who cannot attend school still receive a suitable education.

Since the implementation of the actions, the council says roles are now clearer, data has been cleared up and more children are being placed with approved providers with four out of five children receiving alternative education now supported through the authority's list of vetted providers.

Parents say they have mixed reviews of the changes, with the number of complaints dropping, but confusion remaining about when the council must step in, especially for children who are not attending school full-time.

The council says it accepts that while progress has been made, the work is not finished and families are still waiting to see the full changes in practice.

A wider review of the alternative provision system as a whole, is running until Spring, said the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, on X. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.