Cambridgeshire County Council (20 011 284)
Category : Adult care services > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 31 Mar 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Ms B’s complaint about the Council breaching her confidentiality. This is because we could not add to the Council’s response or make a finding of the kind Ms B wants. Complaints about breaches of data are for the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), and it would be reasonable for Ms B to ask the ICO to consider whether the evidence she has breaches confidentiality.
The complaint
- Ms B complained to the Council that a Social Worker discussed personal information about her with a hairdresser causing her to suffer harassment and abuse on social media.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:
- it is unlikely we would find fault, or
- it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
- it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
- we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
- there is another body better placed to consider this complaint, or
- it would be reasonable for the person to ask for a council review or appeal.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
- We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered the information and documentation Ms B and the Council provided. I sent Ms B a copy of my draft decision for comment.
What I found
- Ms B says a Social Worker discussed her personal life with a local hairdresser who she had complained about. Ms B says the Social Worker and the hairdresser are friends. As a consequence of the complaint, Ms B says the hairdresser targeted her on social media, causing her to suffer distress, harassment, and abuse.
- The Council investigated Ms B’s complaints. It found no evidence staff had breached Ms B’s personal data. Ms B says the Social Worker and the hairdresser know each other and believes the information could have only come from the Social Worker. however, we could not make this finding.
- The Information Commissioner’s Office considers complaints about breaches of data. Ms B can ask the Information Commissioner to consider whether the evidence she has, demonstrates there has been a breach of her personal data by the Council.
Final decision
- We will not investigate this complaint. This is because we could not add to the Council’s response or make a finding of the kind Ms B wants.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman