Staffordshire County Council (20 010 313)
Category : Children's care services > Child protection
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 23 Sep 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of Mr X in a report for a court. The matters complained of are not separable from those about which Mr X has a right to go to court it would be reasonable to use.
The complaint
- Mr X said the Council’s assessments of him have been inaccurate and it has wrongly refused to correct them.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X’s complaint is about what the Council has written about him as a parent in assessments, most recently in 2021. The Council has written a s.37 report for a court based on its view of Mr X’s parenting. Courts decide where children should live and who they should have contact with. It would be for a court to consider the validity of the s.37 report.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is not separable from matters which are for a court to decide, not us, and it would be reasonable for Mr X to use his right to go to court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman