Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the actions of the Council’s children’s services. This is because we could not add to the investigation carried out by the Council or achieve a different outcome. The Information Commissioner is better placed to consider Mr X’s complaint about an alleged data breach.

The complaint

1. Mr X says that social workers working for the Council’s children’s services gave him inaccurate information about contact with his children, committed a breach of data protection by sharing confidential information about Mr X with a third party and failed to communicate with him properly.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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:

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

3. We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. In responding to Mr X’s complaint, the Council spoke to the social workers involved who denied providing Mr X with inaccurate information about contact with his children and denied sharing confidential information about Mr X with a third party.
7. I will not investigate Mr X’s complaints that social workers gave him inaccurate information or that they shared confidential information about him. We were not privy to the conversations that Mr X refers to so could not reach a robust decision as to what was said. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) are better placed to deal with Mr X’s complaint that the Council committed a data breach.
8. I will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about how the social workers communicated with him. The Council accepted that the social workers communication with Mr X had been poor. It apologised to Mr X and shared learning with the social workers and their managers. This is a proportionate response so further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we could not add to the investigation carried out by the Council or achieve a different outcome. The ICO is better placed to consider Mr X’s complaint about an alleged data breach.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman