Stoke-on-Trent City Council (21 013 999)
Category : Children's care services > Looked after children
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 27 Jan 2022
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the care of the complainant’s children. This is because we cannot achieve what the complainant wants and cannot consider what happened in Court.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I will refer to as Miss B, complains that the Council’s social workers have lied in Court and failed to act in the best interests of her children.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
- We cannot investigate a complaint about the start of court action or what happened in court. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5/5A, paragraph 1/3, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Miss B has two children who are in foster care. She complains that the children’s social workers lied in Court and have failed to act in their interests while they have been in foster care. Miss B wants the Council to return the children to her care.
- We will not investigate Miss B’s complaint. By law, what happens in Court falls outside our jurisdiction, so we cannot investigate the evidence the social workers gave.
- It is also the case that we cannot achieve what Miss B wants. It is not for the Ombudsman to take a view on whether Miss B’s children should be returned to her or remain in foster care. That is a matter for the Courts. If Miss B wants her children returned, her recourse is to go to Court.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss B’s complaint because we cannot achieve the outcome she wants and cannot consider what happened in Court.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman