Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about ongoing delays investigating her complaint about failures to protect her from abuse as a child. The Council is currently completing an independent review of Ms X’s records. It is unlikely an investigation would lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains the Council has delayed investigating her complaint about historic failings to protect her from abuse when she was a child. She says the ongoing delays are causing distress. She wants the Council to investigate her complaint, apologise for its historic failings and provide a financial remedy for the harm and distress caused.

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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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

5. The law sets out a three-stage procedure for councils to follow when looking at complaints about children’s social care services. The accompanying statutory guidance, ‘Getting the Best from Complaints’, explains councils’ responsibilities in more detail. Each stage has a statutory timescale. The stage two investigation should be completed within a maximum of 65 working days.
6. The guidance states that councils can consider and suggest alternative ways to resolve a complaint whilst any given stage is ongoing. It also states that once a complaint is accepted at stage one of the procedure, the complainant is entitled to pursue their complaint through all three stages, if that is the complainant’s wish.
7. Ms X first approached us in October 2025. She told us the Council had accepted her complaint under the statutory children’s complaints procedure but had refused to escalate her complaint to stage two. Following our contact, the Council said it would agree to complete a stage two investigation.
8. Since October 2025, the Council contacted Ms X and offered her an independent review of her records as an alternative approach, outside of the statutory procedure. I have seen evidence that Ms X agreed to this approach. The independent review is currently ongoing. Although the Council initially told Ms X it would complete the review by the end of January 2026, it has recently extended the deadline until mid February.
9. Ms X approached us again in January 2026 as she was unhappy with this further delay.
10. We will not investigate this complaint. Although I acknowledge Ms X’s frustration with the further delay, Ms X agreed to the records review and was made aware that this review would not constitute a formal stage two investigation under the statutory procedure. Given that Ms X agreed to this approach, it is unlikely we would criticise the Council for failing to progress a stage two statutory investigation at this stage. As the records review is being completed outside of the statutory process, we cannot consider the statutory timescales.
11. The Council has kept Ms X appropriately updated about the delay and told her that it will complete its review by mid-February 2026. It is unlikely an investigation by us would lead to a different outcome.
12. If Ms X remains dissatisfied after receiving the review response, it is open to her to request the Council complete a statutory stage two investigation.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because it is unlikely an investigation would lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman