Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s investigation of a bruise Mr Y sustained. There is insufficient evidence of fault, and we could not achieve the outcome Mrs X seeks.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained about alleged inconsistencies in the Council’s and Care Provider’s investigations of safeguarding concerns, relating to her father (Mr Y). She said the Council failed to consult with her as part of its investigation and failed to address her questions. Mrs X suspected bruising was caused to her father by a care worker, and said alternative explanations provided by the Council were not plausible.
2. Mrs X said the matter had a significant impact on her and the wider family’s health and wellbeing. She wanted confirmation of her suspicion a care worker caused the bruising to Mr Y.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X complained to us about the Council’s safeguarding investigation and its response to her complaint about the matter.
7. The Council received the safeguarding referral from Mrs X and has outlined attempts it made to gather further information from her. Given that Mrs X made the referral, the Council was aware of her views on the matter in any event and considered these as part of its analysis. There is insufficient evidence of any fault in how the council considered Mrs X’s views.
8. The Council consulted with the Care Provider, Mr Y’s GP and the police as part of its enquiry. It considered the information it received from each source. It outlined the different possible causes of Mr Y’s bruise, and set out its analysis of each possibility. The Council concluded:
• there was no evidence the bruise was caused intentionally by care workers;
• the bruise could have been caused unintentionally, but there was no indication this had occurred;
• care workers acted appropriately upon observing the bruise and reported it accordingly. They updated all relevant paperwork within appropriate timeframes; and
• the bruising could have been due to a number of factors, including Mr Y’s scratching and more fragile skin, and a tight jumper increasing the likelihood of a friction bruise.
9. Mrs X raised concerns via the Council’s complaint process about discrepancies, for example a reference to Mr Y wearing a cardigan when he only wore jumpers, and her view it was not plausible a tight jumper could have caused Mr Y’s bruising. The Council responded to her points via its complaint process. Mrs X disagrees with the responses it provided, but this does not mean the Council was at fault.
10. It is not for the Ombudsman to replace the Social Worker’s professional judgement of the facts of the case, in the absence of fault in how they came to their decision. There is insufficient evidence of any fault in how the Council considered the matter.
11. In any event, we could not add to the investigation the Council already carried out, and we could not achieve a different or more meaningful outcome. We could not say what happened and how Mr Y’s bruise was caused. It is not for us to decide what is a plausible explanation for Mr Y’s bruise. We could not achieve the outcome Mrs X seeks by complaining.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault, and we could not achieve the outcome Mrs X seeks.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman