Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about the complainant’s children because the matters have been considered in court.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, has concerns about the well-being of her children.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and the Council’s responses. I checked with the Council and found out that officers have no concerns about the children. I invited Ms X to comment on a draft of this decision.

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What I found

What happened

5. Ms X’s children live with their father. The court decided that they should live with him. The Council was involved in the legal proceedings but the case is now closed. The Council has no current involvement.
6. Ms X says the Council has stopped her having contact with her children. She says abuse from her ex-husband made her ill and he is abusing the children. She says the Council has ignored her when she raised concerns about her children and different organisations and officers are conspiring to work against her. Ms X wants compensation and for officers to be removed from their jobs.
7. I spoke with a safeguarding officer who explained they have no concerns about the safety of the children.

Assessment

8. The children live with their father and have been placed there as a result of court decisions. I appreciate Ms X has concerns, and feels she has been denied access, but I cannot investigate anything that has been considered in court. The matters Ms X complains of are too closely linked to the court action to allow for an investigation.

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Final decision

9. I cannot start an investigation because the matters have been considered in court.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman