Summary: We cannot investigate the Council’s decision to suspend its response to Mr X’s complaint. The law prevents us from investigating complaints about matters that are being, or have been, considered in court.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has suspended his complaint about the child protection process. He says this decision infringes on his parental rights and has caused him distress. Mr X wants the Council to consider his complaint and provide a written response.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. Mr X made a complaint through the Council’s statutory complaints process regarding child protection matters. The Council suspended its consideration of the complaint after legal proceedings began in relation to the same issue.
7. We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint because it lies outside our jurisdiction. The law prevents us from investigating complaints about matters that have been considered by a court or as part of court proceedings.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it lies outside our jurisdiction. We cannot consider complaints related to ongoing court proceedings.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman