Summary: the Council is at fault for failing to involve Mr F in a children and family assessment. As a result, the assessment is one-sided and fails to represent his views. The Council has apologised, added Mr F’s comments to his children’s files, changed its practices and made a symbolic payment to acknowledge the distress caused. This is a suitable remedy.

The complaint

1. Mr F complains about a children and family assessment undertaken by the Council in November 2019. He complains the Council failed to involve him and the assessment was one-sided and inaccurate as a result. Mr F complains he did not have an opportunity to respond to allegations of domestic violence and child chastisement.
2. Mr F is unhappy with the Council’s response to his complaint. In particular, he wants the allegations against him to be investigated so he can show they are untrue.

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What I have investigated

3. I have considered the Council’s response to Mr F’s complaint. I have not investigated the allegations against him.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
5. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I have considered:
• information provided by Mr F;
• information provided by the Council, including its response to Mr F’s complaint at Stages 1 and 2 of its complaints process.
7. I invited Mr F and the Council to comment on my draft decision.

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What I found

8. Mr F and his ex-partner, Ms M, have two children. One of the children’s schools made a referral to the council in 2019. The school was concerned because the child was often late, and when the school raised the matter it appeared problems at home were the cause.
9. The Council decided to complete a child and family assessment. Councils undertake child and family assessments in order to understand the needs of children.
10. Following the assessment, the Council concluded there were no concerns for the safety of Mr F and Ms M’s children, but the family might benefit from some support. The Council offered support with the impact on the children of Mr F and Ms M’s separation, debt and domestic abuse. Mr F objects to the term ‘domestic abuse’.
11. The Council says all parties engaged well with the support offered and, as far as the children are concerned, the situation is now much better.

Mr F’s complaint to the Council

12. Mr F complained to the Council because he was not involved in the children and family assessment. He believes the assessment was one-sided and inaccurate as a result. Mr F is particularly unhappy he did not have an opportunity to respond to Ms M’s allegations of domestic violence and physical chastisement of the children which are recorded in the assessment.
13. The Council responded to Mr F’s complaint at both stages of its complaints process. For the second stage, the Council appointed an independent investigator to carry out an investigation.
14. The investigator carried out a through and detailed investigation. She concluded the Council had missed opportunities to involve Mr F in the assessment, and as a result he did not have an opportunity to respond to the allegations against him. She was critical of the Council’s handling of Mr F’s complaint. She made recommendations for service improvements.
15. The Council accepted her findings and recommendations. The Council apologised for its mistakes and offered Mr F a payment of £500 to recognise the distress caused by the failure to involve him in the assessment and delays in the complaints process. The Council agreed to add Mr F’s comments on the assessment to his children’s files.
16. Unhappy with the Council’s response, Mr F complained to the Ombudsman.
17. In doing so, Mr F made it clear his wants to refute the allegations against him. He made counter-allegations against Ms M. He sent me a considerable amount of evidence to support his case. I have carefully considered everything Mr F sent, but to protect the privacy of all involved I will not repeat the details here.

Consideration

18. I am satisfied the Council has responded properly to Mr F’s complaint. I agree with the independent investigator’s findings and recommendations. I am satisfied the Council has taken appropriate action in response to her recommendations.
19. The Council is at fault for failing to involve Mr F in the children and family assessment. As a result, the assessment is one-sided and fails to represent his views. The Council has apologised, added Mr F’s comments to his children’s files, changed its practices and made a symbolic payment to acknowledge the distress caused. I consider this a suitable remedy. I will, therefore, complete my investigation.
20. Mr F wants the allegations against him to be investigated so he can show they are untrue. He wants to ‘clear his name’.
21. Ms M, not the Council, made the allegations. Mr F objects to her use of the term ‘domestic violence’ to describe his alleged conduct. He says that like many other couples, he and Ms M had disagreements, but he was never violent.
22. I have read the assessment and I am satisfied it makes clear the nature of Ms M’s allegations against Mr F.
23. The Council must decide whether Mr F’s children are at risk. The Council took Ms M’s allegations at face value and offered her support, but ultimately concluded the children were not at risk from harm. There was no fault in this.
24. The Council should have sought Mr F’s views before completing the assessment, but it is likely the outcome would have been the same if it had. It is not the Council’s job to decide whether there was domestic violence in Mr F and Ms M’s relationship. The Council’s job is to consider whether the children are at risk.
25. If the Council had sought Mr F’s views, the assessment would have been more balanced. The fact it did not is fault. However, the assessment would still have recorded Ms M’s allegations and it is likely the Council would still have offered her support. The Council has apologised, added Mr F’s views to his children’s files and offered a symbolic payment for the distress caused by the lack of balance in the report. This is a suitable remedy.

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Final decision

26. I have completed my investigation. The Council should have involved Mr F in the children and family assessment, but it has now taken appropriate action. Mr F wants to disprove Ms M’s allegations, but this is not the job of the assessment or the complaints process.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman