Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the accuracy of Council reports. We could not achieve a significantly different outcome than has already been offered.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, says the Council holds inaccurate reports about him.

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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:
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

5. Mr X was a foster carer. He says he left the Council’s area in September 2021. He says that as part of a review in March 2022 the Council produced end of placement reports. He says the reports were inaccurate and unfair.
6. The Council says this is a data protection complaint. It says Mr X’s views and comments can be attached to the reports.

Analysis

7. Our investigation is unlikely to achieve significantly more because:
1. Mr X has a right under the Data Protection Acts to ask that documents are rectified. This means that any errors are corrected. If the Council fails to do so, it is reasonable to expect Mr X to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Parliament set up the ICO to consider data protection disputes which includes ‘right to rectification’ disputes. The ICO are better placed than us to consider if the Council should change its records. This is particularly so because there are complex exemptions for child protection case files.
2. In cases where we have considered inaccurate documents, the usual remedy we have sought, is the Council placing the complainant’s version or comments with the disputed documents. The Council has already offered this.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is unlikely we could achieve a significantly different remedy.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman