London Borough of Wandsworth (22 015 595)
Category : Children's care services > Child protection
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 09 Mar 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an investigation carried out by the Council into allegations made by Mrs X’s child Y. This is because we would be unlikely to provide a worthwhile outcome for Mrs X.
The complaint
- Mrs X complained the Council failed to properly respond to her complaint about a section 47 investigation into allegations made by her child Y.
- Mrs X said she and her family have been put to distress and upset by the Council’s actions.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide:
- we could not add to any previous investigation by the organization or
- further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- After Mrs X’s child Y made a disclosure of abuse, the Council carried out an investigation into the allegations.
- After the investigation concluded Mrs X complained to the Council about the social worker involved with the case and asked specific questions about the social worker’s training. She also asked the Council to outline its process for investigating complaints of this nature and to confirm whether it had followed this process correctly.
- The Council conducted a stage 2 statutory complaints investigation and escalated the matter to a stage 3 panel when Mrs X indicated she was unhappy with its findings. The independent person (IP) who carried out the investigation made upheld several of Mrs X’s complaint points and made several recommendations, which the Council agreed with.
- The Council confirmed that the social worker involved with the case was fully trained and accredited by Social Work England and the Council was happy with their conduct. The Council also explained the guidance it complied with in carrying out the statutory complaints investigation into Y’s allegations.
- Mrs X wants us to find the Council at fault for failing to answer her questions. The Council has confirmed the social worker involved with the case was suitably trained and acted in line with the requirements of their role. This was satisfactory. The exact details of the social worker’s training and whether there are any issues with their performance requiring additional training are personal employment matters and the Council’s concern.
- The Council has also confirmed the guidance it followed when it carried out the statutory complaints investigation. The Council has taken note of the recommendations made by the IP where the IP identified fault. The Ombudsman will not re-investigate matters which have already been suitably addressed. There is no evidence of fault in the investigation the Council carried out into Mrs X’s complaint. These were also satisfactory actions for the Council to take.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because further investigation would not lead to a worthwhile outcome for Mrs X.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman