Summary: We will not investigate this complaint alleging staff failed to safeguard the complainant’s late relative. This is because the matter is being considered by the coroner, so, at present, there is no worthwhile outcome achievable.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has delayed investigating his complaint.
2. Mr X says staff misconduct remains unaddressed. Mr X says his relative died recently and he reports this was due to officers failure to act on his reports of his relative living in unsafe living conditions leading to her death.

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

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My assessment

6. Mr X says the Council should investigate his complaint due to the staff misconduct he has identified.
7. The Council has refused to accept his complaint saying it is too early for it to consider in view of the ongoing Coroner considerations.
8. We will not investigate. This is because we are also unlikely to achieve any worthwhile outcome if we investigated now given the ongoing consideration by the coroner’s office. Due to the nature of our role we investigate after all ongoing complaint considerations have ceased.
9. I should also add we would not be able to make a causal link between any failings by Council staff and Mr X’s relative’s death. This is the coroner’s role and not the Ombudsman’s.
10. Further, complaints about staff misconduct can be considered by the professional body for social workers: Social Work England.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is no worthwhile outcome achievable.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman