Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about a comment made by a Council officer during a telephone call. This is because an investigation by this office could not add to the response already provided via the Council’s investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Ms X, complains a Council officer made a comment during a telephone call that Ms X did not care about her children.

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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 effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. We do not start an investigation if we decide we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Ms X complained a Council officer commented during a telephone call that Ms X did not care about her children.
7. The Council investigated. The telephone call was not recorded but it questioned the officer about the call. The officer strongly denied making the comment. She said the telephone call had been an extremely difficult one and she ended the call because she felt Ms X’s tone was aggressive and hostile.
8. The Council did not uphold the complaint as it was unable to verify what was said during the call.
9. Given the differing accounts and recollections of the parties involved and the lack of a recording, I do not see that an investigation by this office would be able to add to the response that has already been provided by the Council on this matter. The available information has already been considered and it would not be possible for us to reliably reconcile the differing accounts.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because an investigation by this office would not be able to add to the response already provided via the Council’s investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman