Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint the Council refused to investigate her concerns about how it safeguarded her when she was a Looked After Child. The complaint relates to events which occurred over 12 months ago, and it is unlikely we would find fault with the Council’s decision not to investigate it further. Additionally, we will also not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of her requests for information. The Information Commissioner is better placed to consider and decide complaints about data protection.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council refused to investigate her complaint about the service provided to her when she was a Looked After Child from aged 3 onwards. Mrs X said she was injured while in a foster placement arranged by the Council.
2. Mrs X also complained the Council did not properly act on her requests for information.
3. Mrs X said this caused distress.
4. Mrs X wants the Council to apologise and provide the information she has asked for.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

5. 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)
6. 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, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• there is another body better placed to consider this complaint.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

7. We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

8. I considered information provided by Mrs X.
9. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

10. I have read the documents Mrs X supplied to us about her childhood and recognise this will have been a challenging and difficult experience for her to complain to us.
11. Mrs X complained to the Council about this matter in 2024. The Council responded to Mrs X’s complaint at the time and did not receive a request for escalation.
12. The children’s statutory complaint procedure allows the Council to decline to take a complaint about matters which have occurred more than 12 months before a complaint was raised with it. It can do so, provided it explains its reasons why it has decided this, and does so on a case-by-case basis.
13. In 2026, the Council said it would not consider Mrs X’s complaint further as the complaint had already been considered. It did however invite Mrs X to provide reasons for the delay in requesting escalation of her complaint. From the evidence I have seen, Mrs X has not provided reasons to the Council for it to consider.
14. It is unlikely we would find fault if we were to investigate the Council’s decision and therefore, we will not investigate the Council’s decision here.
15. I have considered whether there are good reasons for us to exercise discretion to consider Mrs X's complaint. The law, explained in paragraph five, says we should not investigate late complaints. As Mrs X first complained to the Council more than 12 months before complaining to us, we will not disapply the law to investigate now.
16. Mrs X also complained about how the Council handled her requests for information.
17. We will not investigate this part of Mrs X’s complaint. The Ombudsman does not usually investigate complaints about personal data as this is a matter better dealt with by the Information Commissioner’s office (ICO).
18. The ICO is the regulator for information rights matters and oversees complaints involving personal data. It has recently published guidance to councils concerning people’s right to access their care records. It would therefore be reasonable to expect Mrs X to complain to the ICO.

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Final decision

19. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. Some of the complaint is late, there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision not to investigate further and the ICO is better placed to consider data protection complaints.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman