Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council handled Mr X’s concerns about the welfare of his children. The complaint is mostly about matters we already considered and decided in 2023. We could not achieve a meaningful outcome in relation to the matter Mr X says is new and separable.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council perverted the course of justice by concealing child abuse. He said this has caused a miscarriage of justice and prolonged abuse of children.
2. Mr X wanted the Council to investigate his concerns relating to the mother of his children, provide apologies and action recommendations from a report produced in 2022 as part of another council’s complaints process.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
4. 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)
5. 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, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

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

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

Mr X’s previous complaint to us

8. We decided in October 2023 not to investigate a complaint from Mr X. That complaint was about how the Council handled his request it investigate his concerns about his children after they moved into its area. The Council had decided the matter had already been addressed by the other council (Council B).
9. We explained we cannot investigate matters that are too closely connected with court proceedings, and decided the issues Mr X raised were not separable from the child arrangement proceedings that had taken place between him and the mother of his children. The Council advised Mr X that if he wanted to seek contact with his children, he would need to do so via the courts.

The current complaint

10. Mr X’s complaint raises concerns we already considered and decided, and I will not consider those matters again here. We cannot investigate matters the courts considered and decided, or that are inextricably linked to the proceedings.
11. We will also not consider late matters, as Mr X could have complained to us sooner about matters he was aware of more than 12 months before bringing this current complaint to the Ombudsman. Any actions not carried out after a report in 2022 could have been escalated much sooner.
12. Mr X’s complaint to the Council and to us included reference to one matter he considers new and sufficiently separable to earlier complaints. This relates to the mother of his children having made a police report about him in 2025 that he considered to be without basis. He indicates this evidences ongoing abuse of his children, as he considers their mother is coercing them and alienating him. The Council declined to consider a complaint about the matter as it did not consider it to be a new and separable issue.
13. It is not proportionate for us to consider this matter further, despite it possibly being separable. This is because, regardless of any findings we came to, we could not achieve a meaningful outcome for Mr X. While Mr X has not specifically stated the outcome he seeks is reinstatement of contact with his children, it is clear this is the outcome he ultimately seeks.
14. As advised by the Council and us previously, only the courts can make a new decision about Mr X’s children’s residence and contact. It is open to Mr X to seek legal advice.
15. We cannot come to findings about allegations of a criminal nature. Mr X has referred his concerns relating to perverting the course of justice with the police.

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Final decision

16. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we could not achieve a meaningful outcome by doing so.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman