Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the preparation and content of a report which formed part of Court proceedings. We are unlikely to achieve a significantly different outcome for complaint procedure failings than the Council has offered.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mr X, says the Council has not fairly investigated his complaint about a children services’ report.

Back to top

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 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:
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. We do not start an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
4. 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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

7. In February 2021, Mr X complained to the Council about the preparation and content of a children services assessment. He says this assessment was inaccurate and unfair. He says the officers who prepared it did not properly investigate events. He says the Council failed to properly investigate his allegations about his children’s care.
8. The Council considered his complaint within its Children Act statutory complaints procedure. It completed the process in August 2022. This upheld one part of his complaint about how the officers had described an allegation against Mr X. The Council agreed to check with the police what had happened and amend its records. It has now done this. It also paid Mr X £500 for the delays in the complaints process.
9. Mr X complained to us. He says the complaints process was not fair or thorough. He says it dragged on too long. And he says the Council failed to fulfil its promise to complete the accuracy check of one part of the assessment.

Analysis

10. Mr X has confirmed the assessment was used in two court proceedings. This includes Child Arrangement Order proceedings where the Court could have ordered further investigations into Mr X’s allegations. We cannot investigate the content or preparation of the single assessment as it formed part of court proceedings. We cannot investigate whether the Council should have investigated his allegations further as the Court could have ordered this.
11. We can consider the Children Act complaints procedure process. However, we will not do so, as it is unlikely we would achieve a remedy greater than the £500 offered.

Back to top

Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are unlikely to achieve a significantly different remedy than the Council has offered for the complaint procedure failings. And we cannot investigate his complaint about a report used in court proceedings.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman