Summary: Ms X complained about the Council’s actions in relation to her child, Z. We found fault because the Council failed to consider her complaint under the children’s statutory complaints procedure. This caused Ms X avoidable distress and frustration. To remedy the injustice caused, the Council will now consider Ms X’s concerns through the statutory procedure and apologise for failing to do this originally. It will make a payment to her and issue guidance to staff.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains about how the Council handled matters relating to her child, Z, who the Council looks after. She says the Council has not improved communications with her about Z and that it has still not properly involved her in matters relating to them, despite her complaints.
2. Ms X says this has caused her significant and avoidable distress, frustration and uncertainty.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
5. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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How I considered this complaint

6. I have considered all the information Ms X and Ms Y provided. I have discussed this complaint with Ms Y. I have also considered information provided by the Council.
7. Ms Y and the Council had the opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I have taken any comments received into consideration before reaching my final decision.

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What I found

The statutory children’s complaints procedure

8. The law sets out a three-stage statutory procedure for councils to follow when looking at complaints about children’s social care services. The procedure was set up to give children and those representing them an opportunity for a thorough independent investigation of their concerns.
9. The statutory procedure has three stages:
• stage 1 is a local resolution by the council;
• stage 2 is an investigation by an investigating officer (IO) who will prepare a detailed report and findings. The investigation is overseen by an independent person (IP) to ensure its impartiality. The council then issues an adjudication letter which sets out its response to the findings; and
• stage 3 is a review panel with an independent chair to consider any outstanding issues.
10. The law sets out what issues must be considered using the statutory complaints procedure.

The Council’s child social care complaint procedure

11. The Council operates a three-stage process.
12. Stage one provides a response from a manager in 10 working days.
13. Stage two, if still unhappy, is investigated by a different person to stage one and who works with an independent person. It aims to complete the investigation within 25 days.
14. If still unhappy, stage three is an independent review panel made up of a chair person and two independent people. The panel will write a report and make recommendations to an executive director. The complainant will receive a letter explaining the outcome.

What happened

15. I have set out below a summary of the key events. This is not meant to show everything that happened.
16. Ms X is being represented by an advocate, Ms Y, in her complaint.
17. Ms X has a child, Z. Z is subject to a care order. This placed them in care and meant they are a looked after child (LAC). Z has been in care for several years. Ms X retains parental responsibility for Z. Ms X has no direct contact with Z.
18. Assisted by Ms Y, Ms X made a complaint to the Council in June 2023. She was unhappy because she:
• felt that despite still having parental responsibility for Z, she was not kept updated about matters in a timely manner even when she chased this;
• was not kept involved;
• did not receive LAC reports in advance of meetings;
• was not given information even when she requested it;
• was not given information when Z’s accommodation placement changed;
• was not routinely invited to care team meetings; and
• had not been able to build a relationship with Z’s social worker because of a lack of communication.
19. Ms X voiced her concerns that the Council would not prioritise contacting her in the event of something significant happening involving Z. She was worried because she felt the Council was the link between her and Z and a lack of communication may affect any future relationship with Z.
20. The Council sent Ms X it stage one response in July 2023. The Council apologised for various instances of poor communication, missed information and for not sharing reports in the correct timescale. It set out a list of things it would do to improve Ms X’s experience in future.
21. Ms X escalated her complaint to stage two at the beginning of August 2023. She said she had still not had any recent contact from Z’s social worker, had not attended a care team meeting since September 2022 and that actions agreed in LAC reviews were not being carried out.
22. The Council sent its stage two response in March 2024. It said it agreed with her concerns and upheld her complaint.
23. Ms X escalated her complaint to stage three in May 2024. She remained unhappy that despite conversations and her complaints to the Council, she felt communication had not improved since her stage one complaint. She was unhappy the Council had not begun conversations or shared information with Z about Ms X and the wider family.
24. The Council sent its stage three response at the end of June 2024. The officer responding said she had completed her investigation by reviewing various documents and legislation as well as speaking to service managers. The Council partially upheld some aspects but did not uphold others.
25. Ms Y brought Ms X’s complaint to us in March 2025.
26. In a telephone conversation with me, Ms Y said her and Ms X felt communication had worsened since the stage three response and they were now getting very little information about Z from the Council at all.

Analysis

27. The Council dealt with Ms X’s complaint using a three-stage process. This did not fully mirror its child social care process in timescale or how each stage was dealt with. Ms Y had to remind the Council at stage two that a different person should be looking at the complaint, not the original investigating officer. There is no evidence to suggest a panel was involved at stage three.
28. Councils should use the children’s statutory complaints procedure for complaints about actions they take to meet their duties under Part 3 of the Children Act 1989.
29. In the circumstances of this complaint, I am satisfied the Council’s failure to respond to Ms X’s complaint using the children’s statutory complaints procedure was fault.
30. As a parent, she met the criteria of someone “who may complain” as per the statutory guidance: Getting the Best from Complaints.
31. In my view, the content of Ms X’s complaint also meets the criteria of “what may be complained about” because she raises concerns about:
• an unwelcome or disputed decision;
• the quality or appropriateness of a service;
• attitude or behaviour of staff; and
• assessment, care management and review.
32. The statutory procedure provides an important, independent route of redress for vulnerable children, young people and those acting on their behalf. The fault meant Ms X was put through the wrong complaint procedure unnecessarily. This caused significant avoidable distress and frustration. I have made a recommendation below to remedy the injustice caused.

Agreed action

33. Within one month of the date of my final decision, the Council will take the following action:
• apologise to Ms X for the injustice caused by pursuing her complaint through the incorrect complaint procedure needlessly;
• make a symbolic payment to Ms X of £300 to reflect the avoidable distress caused and the time and trouble in making her complaints; and
• remind relevant staff of the statutory guidance ‘Getting the Best from Complaints’ particularly around ‘who may complain’ and ‘what may be complained about’. The Council should also draw attention to the Ombudsman’s good practice guidance on the children’s statutory complaints process. The Council should remind staff via training, or a briefing paper, a copy of which can be shared with the Ombudsman.
34. The Council will commission a stage two investigation into Ms X’s complaint immediately, using the statutory procedure. The investigation should complete within 65 working days of the date of my final decision.
35. The apology written should be in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies on making an effective apology.
36. Payments made are in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies.
37. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

38. I have now completed my investigation. I uphold this complaint with a finding of fault causing an injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman