Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to decline to consider all aspects of the complainant’s complaint about child protection action. This is because it relates to matters which have been, or could have been, considered in court, or are closely related to such matters.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains that the Council was at fault in declining to consider all aspects of his complaint about child protection action.

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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 have the power to start or end an investigation into a complaint about actions the law allows us to investigate. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))
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)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. Mr X’s children were subject to child protection action. The complaint correspondence shows that the Court made in Interim Supervision Order (ISO) in July 2025. At the point at which he made his complaint to the Ombudsman, the children were the subject of care proceedings.
8. Mr X made a complaint to the Council setting out his contention that actions taken by Children’s Services in the period leading to the decision to initiate care proceedings amounted to misconduct. The Council declined to consider most of the aspects of the complaint on the grounds that they related to matters which were related to the forthcoming care proceedings.
9. Mr X argues that, if the matters were investigated and his complaint upheld, this would demonstrate that the threshold set out in Section 31 of the Children Act 1989 is not met and the decision to pursue legal action is therefore flawed. The outcome Mr X was seeking was the withdrawal of the ISO and the cessation of legal proceedings.
10. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. By law, we cannot consider any matters which have been considered in court. This includes the evidence on which the Council asked the Court to grant the ISO, and we can therefore express no view on matters relating to the ISO.
11. The same restriction applies to the matters Mr X says led to the decision to initiate care proceedings. Whether Children’s Services were at fault and whether, without that fault, the action would have been taken, are matters the Court can consider. It is for the Court to decide whether the threshold for action is met, not the Ombudsman. We cannot intervene.
12. Where the substantive matters leading to a complaint do not fall to be investigated, we will not take a view on how a council has considered a complaint about them. It is not a good use of our resources to do so. That is the case here.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it relates to matters which have been, or could have been, considered in court, or are closely related to such matters.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman