Royal Borough of Greenwich (21 005 101)

Category : Children's care services > Child protection

Decision : Closed after initial enquiries

Decision date : 09 Sep 2021

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s response to the concerns raised by the complainant, Miss M, regarding the service her younger brother is receiving from the Council. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. We cannot accept a complaint from Miss M on behalf of her brother as she does not have responsibility for him. Additionally the Council has appropriately treated the issues raised as safeguarding concerns.

The complaint

  1. The complainant, Miss M, says that her younger brother is not receiving an adequate service from the Council. She says he was not supported when he came to stay temporarily with her, and that the Council has not responded appropriately to the safeguarding concerns she raised about his home situation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

  1. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
  2. We may investigate a complaint on behalf of someone who has died or who cannot authorise someone to act for them. The complaint may be made by:
  • their personal representative (if they have one), or
  • someone we consider to be suitable.
  1. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A(2), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

  1. I considered information provided by Miss M.
  2. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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Final decision

  1. We will not investigate Miss M’s complaint because she is not a suitable representative for her brother, as she does not have parental responsibility for him, and has no authority to share his data. However, the Council has been clear that it took her concerns seriously, and I am satisfied that it looked into her concerns appropriately.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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