Summary: We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s involvement in Court proceedings. We will not investigate his complaints about children services’ events which happened more than 12 months ago as there are no reasons to justify doing so.

The complaint

1. Mr X says the Council’s children services team perverted the course of justice and concealed child abuse.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
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/care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. Mr X has previously complained to us about children services’ matters. We closed a complaint in October 2022 which covered children’s court proceedings.
7. Mr X says the Council has perverted the course of justice. We cannot investigate what happened within legal proceedings including the evidence the Council did or did not give.
8. Mr X’s allegations about the concealing of child abuse stem from before 2023. The are no reasons to justify investigating this complaint which Mr X has known about from more than 12 months.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we cannot investigate allegations about the Council’s involvement in court proceedings. And we cannot justify investigating events known to him for more than 12 months.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman