Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about the Council’s children’s services’ involvement in Miss X’s child’s case. The complaint is about the content of the Council’s representations to court and related matters. The law prevents us from investigating what happens in court, and the related matters are not separable from the proceedings themselves.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained about the Council’s actions in 2022, in relation to child protection and subsequent care proceedings. Her complaints included alleged failure to arrange parenting classes, using her disabilities against her and failing to present positive reports as part of the court process. Miss X said the court continued more recently to use this previous information that she considered was false.
2. Miss X said the matter led to her losing care of her child, and significant resulting distress. She wanted the Council to reassess her and her partner, review the information it had presented to court, and for her child to be returned to her care.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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. The courts have said we can decide not to investigate a complaint about any action by an organisation concerning a matter which the law says we cannot investigate. (R (on the application of M) v Commissioner for Local Administration [2006] EHWCC 2847 (Admin))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

8. The law expressly prohibits us from investigating what happens as part of court proceedings. This includes a council’s decision to begin court proceedings and the content of reports written for, or used in, court.
9. We cannot influence the outcome of court proceedings. It was reasonable for Miss X to raise her concerns as part of the proceedings, insofar as they may have impacted the weight the judge assigned to the Council’s representations.
10. We will not investigate the peripheral actions of the social worker, who Miss X says failed to arrange parenting classes before resorting to care proceedings.
11. While it is not the court’s role to decide whether there was fault in the Council’s actions before proceedings began, these matters are not separable from the Council’s subsequent representations to court. We will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the law prevents us investigating what happens as part of court proceedings.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman