Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council allegedly not contacting Mr X before a social worker arrived at his home.

The complaint

1. Mr X said a social worker arrived at his property without contacting him first.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Child protection duties take priority over all other considerations where a child is considered to be at risk of significant harm. That this may cause distress to parents is not of itself evidence of fault.
6. The Council received a report that had several serious concerns about the welfare of Mr X’s infant child in the family home. These included an unexplained injury to the child where there was no record that medical advice had been sought. The Council was entitled to decide in a strategy meeting held the same day that there were potential risks of serious harm and that a medical examination of the child was urgently needed. It did not have to contact Mr X before visiting the family home.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant our further involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman