Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council (25 016 340)
Category : Adult care services > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 15 Dec 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about a Council officer’s conduct while he was talking to a different officer. The complaint is late and there are no good reasons to investigate now.
The complaint
- Mr X complains an officer acted disrespectfully towards him while he was speaking to a different officer about his need for assistance.
- As an outcome to his complaint, Mr X wants the help he says he was promised by an officer, plus an apology.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant which includes the Council’s response.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X complains that an officer disrespected him by laughing when he was speaking to another officer in 2024 about needing assistance. Mr X says he is disabled and was promised assistance by the Council.
- The Council has responded to Mr X’s complaint by outlining that officer has discussed his complaint with him twice this year, firstly in April 2025 and also in September 2025.
- The Council says it established that Mr X’s concerns are related to his support service ending in February 2024. But it also says that Mr X declined the Council’s offer to investigate his complaint formally in April 2025 and that now his complaint is too late for it to investigate now.
- The Council has provided details of a support service that Mr X can access for assistance.
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons to investigate now. Mr X knew from February 2024 about the issues he is raising now and it would have been reasonable to expect him to complain within 12 months.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons to investigate now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman