Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to restrict its contact with Mr X. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council is ignoring its safeguarding duties by restricting its responses to his emails.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

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

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered the information provided by the complainant, the Council and our previous decision reference 24005138.
4. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Our previous decision found insufficient evidence of fault in the Council’s decision to send automatic replies to Mr X’s frequent emails. It found the Council acted in accord with the Council’s unreasonable customer behaviour policy.
6. Since our previous decision, the Council has written to Mr X in response to his ‘stream of emails’. It reiterates his contact remains restricted, and his emails will not receive an individual response. It noted that Mr X had had no further contact with Adult Social Services after previously being advised he was not eligible for support. And it also advised that Mr X may benefit from a mental health needs assessment. It recommended he approach the Ombudsman as he had exhausted the Council’s complaints process.
7. A month later the Council responded to Mr X’s enquiry raised via a third party. The Council wrote that Mr X emails the Council regularly using AI which makes it difficult to understand his concerns. It also said it reviews all the communication to check if there are significant changes to his circumstances.
8. We will not investigate. Mr X has been informed why his contact is restricted in line with the Council’s unreasonable customer behaviour policy. The automatic email response he receives in response to each email provides information on who he should contact if his support needs change. This does not breach the Council’s safeguarding duties.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman