Sheffield City Council (23 010 775)
Category : Children's care services > Child protection
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 20 Nov 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the alleged failure of the Council to protect Mr X and his daughter from abuse by his ex-partner. The matters complained of are not separable from matters concerning who should have care of a child, which only a court could decide.
The complaint
- Mr X said the Council failed to protect him and his daughter from emotional and psychological/physical abuse and parental alienation by his ex-partner.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- The complaint correspondence provided by the Council and Mr X’s account confirm there have historic disagreements between him and his ex-partner regarding the care of their child. The complaint correspondence refers to care orders issued at different dates up to 2019, and Mr X’s attempt to enforce a court order.
- It is clear that the matters complained of are not separable from the opinions formed by the Council of Mr X and his former partner’s actions, and to the Council’s view about with whom the child may safely live and have contact. Only a court can decide where a child should live and with whom he or she should have contact when there is a dispute. We cannot act as an auxiliary to that. That the Council has considered a complaint about these matters does not mean we will also do this, as the legislation setting out our legal powers is not necessarily the same.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the matters complained of are not separable from matters that can only be decided by a court. Therefore, it would be reasonable for Mr X to use his right return to court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman