Wakefield City Council (23 000 553)
Category : Children's care services > Friends and family carers
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 19 Apr 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about the family contact arrangements for Miss X’s grandchild. The matter complained of is not separable from matters that have formed part of court action, or where it would be reasonable to go to court.
The complaint
- Miss X said the Council forced her to turn her son out on the streets or face the prospect of her grandchildren going into foster care. She said the Council had promised to allow her son contact with his child, but had not done so. She wanted the family to be able to spend time together.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- We have the power to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been, raised within a court of law. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Although Miss X may not have been party to court action, she has stated there has been court action regarding her grandchild, who lives with her. That is confirmed by the Council’s final response to her complaint, which she has provided. A dispute about whether her son may have contact with his child, and where that contact might be, would be a matter only a court could decide even if there had been no previous court action. Any Council decision that it would remove Miss X’s grandchildren if her son remained in the home is a matter that is not separable from the right to challenge the decision in court. We have no legal standing to investigate matters that are not separable from disputed matters that are properly for courts to decide.
Final decision
- We cannot investigate Miss X’s complaint because it is not separable from the matter of disputed contact arrangements concerning her grandchild, which either have been or could reasonably be raised in court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman