Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about the actions of the Council in respect of the complainant’s family and his relationship with his son. This is because the matters raise are connected with court proceedings, and are out of the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to here as Mr T, says that
• The Council’s social worker allocated to the family is biased against him, and has told lies in court about him and his relationship with his son. This has resulted in Mr T’s son being in his ex-partner’s care, with little contact between the him and his son.
• The Council does not respond to the PA’s communications.

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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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information provided by Mr T and by the Council. I also sent Mr T an initial view for his comments.

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What I found

5. Mr T has a son, who is in the care of his mother. Mr T has little contact with his son, and believes the social worker for the Council is responsible for this situation.
6. Mr T has complained to the LGSCO, but the complaint is out of our jurisdiction and we cannot investigate it.
7. This is because the main part of the complaint relates to Mr T’s allegations that the family’s social worker is biased against him, and has told lies about him and his relationship with his son, in court. He has provided several examples that he feels evidence these allegations, and he says that he has evidence that supports them.
8. However, the Ombudsman is not allowed to look at any complaint that is connected with court proceedings or has been discussed in court. All of the matters that Mr T has raised are connected with the court proceedings or were discussed in court. Consequently, they are out of our jurisdiction.
9. Mr T questions the actions and decisions of the social worker in the lead up and during the legal proceedings, but was for the court to assess the credibility of the social worker and we cannot question its decisions.
10. If Mr T wishes to complain about the social worker's professionalism, he has the right to approach the Health and Care Professionals Council (HCPC) which is the regulatory body for social workers.
11. Mr T has also complained that, despite its commitment in October 2018 to improve its communication with him, the Council has not done so. I can see no evidence of a complaint being made to the Council about this matter, and he would need to do this before the Ombudsman would consider it.

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Final decision

12. I cannot investigate this complaint as it relates to matters that are out of our jurisdiction.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman