Summary: We will not investigate Miss C’s complaint that the Council has refused to escalate her complaint about the outcome of a child protection enquiry. This is because the complaint concerns matters which may be raised in court.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I will refer to as Miss C, complains that the Council has refused to escalate her complaint about the outcome of a child protection enquiry.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We have the power to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been, raised within a court of law. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have taken account of what Miss C has said in support of her complaint and the complaint response provided by the Council. I have considered what Miss C has said in response to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

4. Miss C’s children are in the Council’s care and are placed with foster carers. Miss C says she is currently taking legal action to have the children returned to her.
5. Separately, Miss C brought a disclosure made by her daughter to the Council’s attention. The Council carried out a child protection enquiry. Its conclusion was that Miss C’s daughter’s disclosure was substantiated, but that she was not at continuing risk.
6. Miss C did not accept the Council’s findings and asked it to escalate her complaint to the next stage of its complaints procedure. The Council declined to escalate the complaint because of the ongoing legal action, though it offered Miss C the opportunity to have the matter reconsidered when the court case had finished. Miss C regards this as unreasonable. She says the child protection issue is separate from the legal matter. She wants the Ombudsman to investigate it so she can use our findings in court.
7. We will not investigate Miss C’s complaint. I do not find that the Council has acted unreasonably in declining to consider the matter until the court case has finished. Whether the children are safe in foster care is a matter which the Court is competent to consider, and it is open to Miss C to bring her concerns to its attention. The child protection matter is not separable from the matters before the Court. It is not our role to assist Miss C in obtaining evidence for use in legal proceedings.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it concerns matters which may be raised in court.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman