Summary: We will not investigate Mr X's complaint about how the Council dealt with him during care and adoption proceedings. This is because the law prevents us from investigating matters that a court has considered or could have considered.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council’s actions during care and adoption proceedings relating to his son. He says the Council discriminated against him because of his disability, failed to follow proper procedures, mishandled his personal data, stopped family contact without good reason, and made decisions that harmed his son. Mr X says this caused him distress and damaged his relationship with his son. He wants the Council to acknowledge its failings, correct its records, apologise, arrange birth re-registration, and award compensation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
4. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. In December 2025, Mr X complained to the Council about how it handled care and adoption proceedings relating to his son.
8. The Council declined to investigate the complaint because it was made more than 12 months after the events complained about and because the matters raised had been considered, or could have been considered, during court proceedings.
9. The Council in its response advised Mr X to refer his data protection complaints to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and to raise concerns about birth re-registration with the General Register Office.
10. We cannot investigate Mr X's complaint because it falls outside our jurisdiction. Mr X’s complaint concerns the Council actions during care and adoption proceedings, and the law prevents us from investigating matters the court has considered or are closely connected to court proceedings.
11. Mr X also says the Council failed to comply with its duties under the Equality Act by not making reasonable adjustments for his disability during the care and adoption proceedings. As this concerns the Councils dealings with Mr X during the Court process, we cannot consider this part of his complaint. 
12. Regarding Mr X’s complaint, the Council wrongly refused his Subject Access Request and breached his personal data. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is the appropriate body to consider complaints about data protection and access to information. It would be reasonable for Mr X to raise these matters with them.

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Final decision

13. We cannot investigate Mr X's complaint. This is because the law prevents us from investigating matters that a court has considered or could have considered.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman