Norfolk County Council (19 017 680)

Statement Upheld Looked after children 05-Oct-2020

Summary: Mr X complains the Council failed to facilitate contact with his children from 2014 to 2017. The Council is at fault for not arranging contact and failing to keep Mr X involved in his children’s care. The Council should apologise, pay Mr X £650, and take action to improve its service.

Surrey County Council (20 003 204)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Looked after children 28-Sep-2020

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about events between 1974 and 1986 when the complainant was looked after by the Council. This is because we cannot achieve the outcome the complainant wants.

Blackpool Borough Council (19 018 321)

Statement Not upheld Looked after children 16-Sep-2020

Summary: Ms X complained about the lack of contact she has had with her child, who is in care. She says the Council has cancelled sessions at short notice which means it has failed to meet the contact requirements set by the court. Ms X says this has caused her distress. The Council was not at fault.

London Borough of Hounslow (19 018 249)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Looked after children 04-Sep-2020

Summary: Mrs X complained on behalf of a looked after child, F. Mrs X complained the Council failed to consider F’s wishes and best interest when it removed them from a foster placement and placed them with new foster parents. Mrs X said the Council refused to accept her complaint about the matter. I have discontinued this investigation. This is because Mrs X is not a suitable representative and has not herself suffered any injustice. The Council had already responded to F’s complaint via their advocate.

London Borough of Newham (19 019 996)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Looked after children 02-Sep-2020

Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate Ms J’s complaint about how in 2011 the Council did not properly conclude the statutory procedure for complaints about children’s services. This is because there is no compelling reason to disapply the rule on late complaints.

London Borough of Enfield (20 002 202)

Statement Closed after initial enquiries Looked after children 01-Sep-2020

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Ms B’s complaint about safeguarding and child protection issues, and the poor complaint handling by the Council. This is because Ms B has no standing to complain for the children she says were abused, and if we are unable to deal with the substantive matters in the complaint we will not investigate the way the Council dealt with Ms B’s complaint.

Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council (19 014 548)

Statement Upheld Looked after children 21-Aug-2020

Summary: Ms C complains her child has not received satisfactory care since they became looked after by the Council. We do not find grounds to agree this is the case or to criticise the Council for imposing limits on Ms C’s contacts with it. But we do note the Council has failed to update Ms C as promised about her child’s progress in care. This has caused Ms C injustice as she has not received information it has promised. The Council has accepted these findings. It has agreed to apologise and take steps to ensure better communications with Ms C in the future.

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council (19 008 937)

Statement Not upheld Looked after children 20-Aug-2020

Summary: There is no fault by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council in relation to this complaint about the way in which it has handled Mr S’s behaviour and his repeated use of the children’s statutory complaints procedure. Nor is there fault in relation to the complaints Mr S had made about the way in which it has managed concerns he has raised in complaints related to the care provided to his children who are looked after by the Council.

Birmingham City Council (19 012 656)

Statement Upheld Looked after children 20-Aug-2020

Summary: The Council significantly delayed providing Miss B with a copy of her social care records from her time as a looked after child, and it is unlikely that it provided all the records which Miss B was entitled to see. The Council has apologised to Miss B, it is in the process of providing Miss B with all of her records and it has taken action to ensure it keeps a proper record of future disclosures. The Council has agreed to also make a payment to Miss B to remedy her injustice.

Northumberland County Council (19 012 899)

Statement Upheld Looked after children 19-Aug-2020

Summary: Mr F complains the Council failed to support him and protect him from abuse and bullying by staff and residents whilst he was in care from 1995 to 1999. The Council has accepted there was fault and has already apologised and made a payment to Mr F, remedying the injustice caused.