Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council handled Miss X’s reports of racial discrimination. This is because the Council has already investigated and responded and an investigation by us would not lead to a significantly different outcome.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains about how the Council managed her discrimination complaint, after it provided support to her. Miss X says the Council’s response has left her feeling isolated, devalued and traumatised. Miss X is also unhappy with how long it took Council to investigate and respond to her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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))
3. The Equality Act 2010 provides a legal framework to protect the rights of individuals and advance equality of opportunity for all. The Equality Act makes it unlawful for organisations carrying out public functions to discriminate on any of the nine protected characteristics listed in the Equality Act 2010. They must also have regard to the general duties aimed at eliminating discrimination under the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. The Council provides support to Miss X. She complained to the Council after she experienced discrimination. When Miss X first reported the incidents to the Council, she found the response suggested a disregard for the seriousness of the issue, and that her experiences were indicative of a wider discriminatory culture.
7. Following Miss X’s complaint, the Council met with her to understand her concerns and responded, setting out the actions it had taken. It said it had provided advice and guidance to others, had discussed her concerns with the relevant managers and identified ways in which it would monitor other concerns of this nature. On the available evidence the Council appears to have had regard to its PSED. And given the actions it has taken, it is unlikely an investigation by us would lead to a significantly different outcome, so we will not investigate.
8. Furthermore, we will not investigate how the Council handled this complaint. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we decide not to deal with the substantive issue. So we will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about delays in the complaint procedure.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the Council has taken appropriate action to address her concerns, and an investigation is unlikely to lead to a significantly different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman