Middlesbrough Borough Council (23 012 684)
Category : Children's care services > Child protection
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 15 Dec 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s alleged failure to properly safeguard Mr X’s children. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to result in a different outcome.
The complaint
- Mr X complained the Council has failed to properly respond to concerns he has raised about his children’s welfare.
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 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 continue an investigation if we decide:
- further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
- we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X’s children are currently being looked after by the Council. Mr X says he has received information indicating that his children have not been appropriately safeguarded and so he complained to the Council about this. He also asked the Council to reinstate contact between him and his children.
- The Council investigated in line with the children’s statutory complaints procedure and did not uphold any of Mr X’s complaints. However, the Council did make several recommendations to address some of the concerns he raised such as agreeing a communication plan to help Mr X raise issues regarding his children and agreeing to support the children in resuming contact with Mr X.
- Mr X remains unhappy and wants us to find the Council at fault. The evidence shows the Council has investigated this matter and put forward reasonable recommendations which address Mr X’s complaint points. There is no evidence of fault in the way the Council carried out the investigation. In any event, the Ombudsman cannot influence or change the current contact and/or custody arrangements, only a court can do that.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because an investigation would be unlikely to result in a different outcome.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman