Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about whether he should have received financial support for caring for his grandchildren from 2007 to 2021. There are no good reasons the late complaint rule should not apply.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, says the Council failed to financially support his family.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council’s replies which it provided.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X says that he and his wife, cared for two of their grandchildren from 2007 to 2011 and another one until 2021. He says the Council paid for them to obtain a court Residence Order. He says they asked the Council in 2007 for financial support and were told they did not qualify.
6. Mr X says they struggled to pay for all the things the grandchildren needed, plus basic household costs and have had to work past the age they envisaged they would retire. He says he asked for further help six years ago.
7. Mr X says last year he looked online and saw that he may have been entitled to the equivalent of fostering allowance or special guardianship allowance. He complained to the Council. In reply, the Council provided some information on what could have been available at the time. It also said it would not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it was more than 12 months old.

Analysis

8. We cannot investigate issues known to Mr X for more than 12 months without good reasons. Here Mr X knew he had to financially support his grand children’s care and the Council would not help him in 2007. A considerable period of time has passed since and the grandchildren have now left his care. Mr X did not need to know the specific law or duty the Council had to provide any support to complain that it was not supporting him. Mr X has not provided enough reasons for the delay in complaining to us.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there are no good reasons the late complaint rule should not apply.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman