Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about delay getting her passport because we could not add to the Council’s response and we cannot achieve the outcome she wants.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains about delays by the Council getting her a passport. She says she could not have holidays abroad and enjoyed her UK holidays less than if she had been able to go abroad. She would like the Council to pay compensation to fund a foreign holiday.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service we but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide we could not add to any previous investigation by the Council, and we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and her advocate.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. I have carefully considered everything Ms X and her advocate said, although I have not included every detail here. I have included as few details as possible to protect the anonymity of Ms X.

6. Ms X lives with a foster carer and it was the Council’s job to get a passport for her. Her foster carer first asked the Council to get Ms X a passport in 2018.
7. Ms X finally got a passport in 2025. She complained to the Council about the delay. She said she would like the Council to pay compensation because she had not been able to go abroad on holiday.
8. The Council explained the difficulties it had encountered when applying for Ms X’s passport. It said it believed the reasons for the delay were largely outside its control, although it could have kept Ms X and her foster carer better informed and chased the Passport Office more. The Council said it was sorry for the delay.
9. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we could not add to the Council’s response and we cannot achieve the outcome she wants. We do not award compensation, and we consider the Council’s apology a satisfactory outcome.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we could not add to the Council’s response and we cannot achieve the outcome she wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman