Essex County Council (21 002 095)
Category : Children's care services > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 28 May 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We cannot investigate Ms X’s complaint about a report written by the Council for court proceedings. This is because the issues Ms X raises are not separable from the matters before the family court.
The complaint
- Ms X says the Council has told lies about her and her children when writing a report ordered by the family court.
- Ms X also says the Council has leaked and lost her personal information.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I have read Ms X’s complaint information and the Council’s final response to her. I also shared my draft decision with her and read her comments.
What I found
- Ms X says the Council has acted unfairly towards her and her children by writing an inaccurate report for the court. And that it has leaked and lost her personal data.
- Courts decide in cases of disputed living and contact arrangements for children. We are not a substitute for that. We have no powers to intervene in court proceedings or investigate reports prepared for the court. Ms X can raise her issues about the Council’s actions to the court.
- The Ombudsman cannot separately investigate council officer actions without considering their consequences. In this case all the effect of the Council’s actions are in the court proceedings, reports and evidence.
- Also, with respect to Ms X’s concerns about the way the Council has handled her personal information, it is open to Ms X to raise this with the specialist body for information handling: the Office of the Information Commissioner.
Final decision
- I cannot investigate this complaint. This is because the issues raised are not separable from court proceedings.
Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman