Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO)
If you’ve raised a formal complaint with your child’s local authority about their education and feel it hasn’t been resolved, you may be able to take your complaint to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO).
The SPSO are independent and investigate complaints about public services in Scotland. However, its role in relation to additional support for learning (ASL) is limited. It’s important to know what the SPSO can and cannot do so you can choose the most effective route to resolve your concerns.
Before going to the SPSO, you must have completed the local authorities’ formal complaints process. This is a legal requirement. More information on the local authority complaints process is on our page around more formal routes for resolving disagreements.
Who are the SPSO?
The SPSO is Scotland’s independent complaints body for public services. It can look at complaints about local authorities, including the way schools are managed. Its role is to make sure that public services have acted fairly and followed the law, policies, and procedures correctly.
You can find out more about the SPSO on their website.
What the SPSO can and can’t help with
The SPSO can investigate complaints where the local authority has not followed its own policies or procedures, for example:
- Not followed its own complaints or education‐related procedures
- Taken an unfairly long time to respond to your concern
- Communicated poorly or made avoidable administrative mistakes
In these cases, the SPSO may recommend improvements, apologise on behalf of the service, or request that procedures are revised.
The SPSO cannot make decisions about the type, level, or location of your child’s support. They also cannot replace other formal legal routes or act as a tribunal for additional support needs.
When the SPSO may be able to help
You can raise a complaint with the SPSO once you’ve gone through your local authorities’ formal complaints process. The SPSO explains how to make a complaint and what to include on their page How to complain about a public service.
When the SPSO receives a complaint, they will:
- Check that it is within their remit
- Investigate whether the local authority followed its procedures correctly
- Suggest remedies if the complaint is upheld, such as an apology or changes to procedures
You can read more about how the SPSO handles complaints on their page How we investigate your complaint.
It’s important to remember that the SPSO is not usually the most direct route for resolving additional support for learning disputes. For issues about the type or level of support your child receives, other formal legal routes exist, such as the Additional Support Needs Tribunal, which you can find information about, on our page ASN Tribunal.
However, having information about the SPSO can be helpful if you feel the local authority has not followed its own procedures.
Support for children and young people
Children and young people have the right to make a complaint if they are unhappy with a service or decision that affects them. They should be supported to share their views, be listened to, and have their complaint taken seriously.
If a child or young person wishes to make a complaint to the SPSO, they can do so themselves or ask someone they trust to help them, such as a family member, carer, or independent advocate. The SPSO will ask whether the child or young person would like someone to support them and can provide information about independent advocacy if that would be helpful.
Independent advocacy and advice can be found through the Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance (SIAA) which lists advocacy services for children and young people across Scotland.
The SPSO’s Child-Friendly Complaints Procedure document explains how children can raise a complaint, what support they can receive, and what to expect from the process. Sections 5.3 and 5.4 highlight their child-led approach to handling complaints.
Where can I find out more?
- SPSO’s Child Friendly Complaints-handling Principles is the SPSO’s guide to how complaints should be handled in Scotland’s public services. It explains children’s rights when making a complaint, what they can expect from organisation, and how their voices should be heard and respected throughout the process.
- Our page on the more formal routes for resolving disagreements provides details of the options available when problems about a child’s support can’t be resolved at school level. It explains the local authority complaints process, independent adjudication, the ASN Tribunal, and other formal legal routes.
- My Rights, My Say have Advice pages for children aged 12–15 on what to do if they’re unhappy with the support they’re getting at school. It outlines how children can share their views, get advocacy or advice, and use their rights under the ASL Act to have their say.
- How to use your rights is Reach’s page for young people on understanding and using their rights in school. It explains how to raise concerns respectfully, where to get support, and what steps to take if they feel their rights are not being respected.