• The complaint
• The Ombudsman’s role and powers
• How I considered this complaint
• What I found
• Final decision

The Ombudsman's final decision:

Summary: Ms X complains the Council failed to provide proper support to her when she and her family were the victims of domestic violence. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. Ms X could have raised her concerns with the Ombudsman sooner and it is unlikely we would now be able to carry out an effective investigation. It is not appropriate to exercise discretion to investigate Ms X’s complaint outside the normal timeframes.

The complaint

1. The complainant whom I shall refer to as Ms X complains the Council failed to act over the complaints of domestic violence from her ex-partner towards herself and family in the 1990’s and 2000’s causing distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. However, 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)
4. If we are satisfied with a council’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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have read the papers submitted by Ms X. I considered the independent review report on Ms X’s complaint and the Council’s response to the report. I have explained my draft decision to Ms X and the Council and considered the comments received.

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What I found

6. Ms X complained to the Council it did not provide proper support to her in the 1990’s and 2000’s when she and her family were the victims of domestic violence by her ex-partner. Ms X’s last contact with the Council was in 2009. The Council was advised in 2016 Ms X wished to report historic abuse.
7. The Council did not consider the complaint though its formal complaints procedure as the matters related to historical concerns which occurred more than 12 months ago. However, the Council reviewed the concerns on an informal basis as a gesture of goodwill. The Council appointed an independent person to consider the complaint based on the information available. The review found the Council could have done more to support Ms X. The report also found Ms X had other agencies involved with her and she was not always forthcoming with the Council about what was happening.
8. The Council considered the independent review and agreed it could have done more to support Ms X in the 1990’s and 2000’s but due to the absence of records it was unable to say much more.
9. The Council apologised to Ms X and offered her £200 as a goodwill gesture. Ms X remains unhappy with the Council’s offer and considers the Council’s response and complaints procedure has failed her again. Ms X says although the Council apologised and admitted failings, she still has no clear answers.

My assessment

10. As set out above, we expect complainants to contact us within 12 months of them becoming aware of the problem. We can make an exception to that requirement if we think there are good grounds why the complaint was not made sooner, and we consider that we could still carry out an effective investigation. But the restriction is there because the longer ago events happened the harder it is to investigate.
11. The events complained of occurred significantly more than 12 months ago. I must therefore consider whether it is appropriate to exercise discretion to investigate the complaint outside our normal timeframes.
12. The Ombudsman’s service has been in existence since 1974. Because of this, I consider it was open to Ms X to have pursued a complaint to the Ombudsman before now. Ms X was in contact with the Council, several agencies and professionals during the time she complains about, so it was possible for her to complain to the Ombudsman if she was unhappy with the support provided by the Council then.
13. Notwithstanding I am satisfied Ms X could have raised her concerns sooner, I have also considered whether we could carry out an effective investigation. The Council considered Ms X’s concerns, but found it was in part, hampered because of poor record keeping.
14. The Ombudsman has considered carefully the matter of historic abuse allegations, and has formed the view that although each case should be looked at on its own merits, in general, the public interest is not best served by the Ombudsman investigating these events from long in the past, however serious the allegations are.
15. This is because even if there is some documentary evidence, it cannot be tested against the personnel involved, and cannot be judged against the standards of today, when norms and procedures are so very different. Additionally, the passage of time means it is more difficult for people to remember things accurately, and it may be some of those involved have left the Council. So, I consider it would be difficult to conduct a fair and accurate investigation into matters that happened as far back as 1996. Some of Ms X’s complaints depend on historical recollections of what was said or not said many years ago. It is highly unlikely that we would be able to come to a sound view on such disputes. In addition, any investigation of events from so long ago is likely to be hampered by modern document retention policies and the turnover of staff.
16. In the circumstances, I do not consider it appropriate to exercise discretion to consider this complaint outside our normal timeframes. Ms X could have raised her concerns with the Ombudsman sooner and it is unlikely we would now be able to carry out an effective investigation.
17. The Council has apologised to Ms X and offered her a £200 payment as a goodwill gesture. I do not consider I can achieve anything further for Ms X.

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Final decision

18. I am completing my investigation. Ms X could have raised her concerns with the Ombudsman sooner and it is unlikely we would now be able to carry out an effective investigation. It is not appropriate to exercise discretion to investigate Ms X's complaint outside the normal timeframes.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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