Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s incorrect advice about stepchild adoption. This is because the Council has upheld the complaint and has apologised, made service improvements and offered a symbolic payment in recognition of the injustice it caused. Further investigation by us would therefore not be proportionate.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council wrongly advised him he could apply to adopt his stepdaughter after she turned 18 years old. He says the Council’s advice has caused him to lose the opportunity to adopt his stepdaughter.
2. Mr X is seeking consideration of whether the remedy offered by the Council is proportionate to the consequences suffered.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, 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

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

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My assessment

5. Mr X contacted the Council to enquire about adopting his stepdaughter.
6. The Council advised him he could make the application after his stepdaughter’s 18th birthday if he had made his intent to do so clear before she turned 18.
7. Mr X relied on this advice and applied to adopt his stepdaughter after she turned 18. The matter progressed through the courts for over a year before he was told the application was invalid from the offset.
8. The Council accept the advice it gave to Mr X was incorrect. For the application to succeed, it would have to have been made before his stepdaughter turned 18.
9. The Council has apologised, set up mandatory training for all relevant staff, agreed to develop a clear internal policy and process guide for staff and information sheets for prospective stepparent adopters, and offered a symbolic payment of £1,000 each in recognition of the impact on Mr X and his stepdaughter.
10. Mr X brought his complaint to this office for consideration of whether the remedy offered suitably addressed the injustice caused.
11. Our guidance on remedies states where we decide it is suitable; we will normally recommend a remedy payment for distress of up to £500. We can recommend a higher sum where we decide the injustice is especially severe and, or, prolonged.
12. The Council has offered significantly more than we would normally recommend for distress or loss of opportunity which suitably accounts for the significant injustice it has caused.
13. The Council has also properly identified how it can carry out service improvements to ensure the situation does not recur.
14. Therefore, further investigation by this office is unlikely to achieve anything beyond the Council’s offer.

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Final decision

15. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Council has upheld the complaint and offered a proportionate remedy. Further investigation would not achieve a worthwhile outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman