London Borough of Bromley (22 007 427)
Category : Children's care services > Child protection
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 15 Sep 2022
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to continue the complainant’s daughter’s child protection plan. This is because we cannot achieve the outcome the complainant is seeking.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I will refer to as Miss B, complains that the Council is at fault in declining to end child protection action in respect of her daughter.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Miss B’s daughter has been the subject of child protection action. Miss B believes the Council should have ended its involvement with her family, given her engagement with the child protection plan and the decision not to start public law proceedings. She believes the decision to continue the child protection plan amounts to fault.
- In response to Miss B’s complaint, the Council has set out its view that a child protection plan remains appropriate at this time. Miss B wants the plan to be ended and for the Council to accept that it is not appropriate to treat her daughter as a child in need as an alternative.
- The Ombudsman will not investigate Miss B’s complaint because we cannot achieve what she wants. The decision to make or maintain a child protection plan is for the child protection conference to make. Miss B disagrees with the decision not to end her daughter’s child protection plan. But investigation by the Ombudsman could not change that decision. We cannot therefore achieve the outcome Miss B is seeking.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss B’s complaint because we cannot achieve the outcome she is seeking.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman