Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the professionalism of the Council’s children services social workers. There is another body better placed to do so.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs X, complains about officers’ conduct within the children services team. She says it was unprofessional and caused problems with her family.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word 'fault' to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered the information Mrs X provided with her complaint and the Council’s replies to her which it provided. I considered Mrs X’s comments on a draft version of this decision.

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What I found

4. In 2020, Mrs X started to care for her grandchild, B, because B’s parents were not able to do so. This caring arrangement was by consent. The Council’s children services team were also involved in the family and had tried to liaise and support contact between B and B’s wider family.
5. Mrs X says the social workers involved acted unprofessionally. She is upset by the things she says they said to her and other family members. She says this caused a lot of anxiety and stress. She says it is one of the reasons they decided they could no longer care for B and at the end of December B moved to other carers.
6. Mrs X complained to the Council. It apologised for how Mrs X felt. It said the complaint about officers’ professionalism was not suited to its complaints procedure.
7. Our role is to investigate the actions of the Council as a corporate body, not to hold a single officer accountable. If Mrs X has concerns about the professionalism or integrity of an individual social worker, it is reasonable to expect her to report her concerns to their professional body, Social Work England. They are better placed to consider Mrs X’s complaint.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because Social Work England are better placed.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman