Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to safeguard Mr X’s child. The matter is for the courts, as the central matter Mr X wishes to challenge is a decision made by the other person with parental responsibility for the child.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council:
• Failed to protect his child from social engineering and abuse by their school.
• Refused to carry out an Education, Health and Care assessment, which the tribunal later ordered it to.
2. Mr X believes the school has caused his child harm. He wants the matter investigating, action taken against the school and for his child to be moved to a different school.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
5. We have the power to start or end an investigation into a complaint about actions the law allows us to investigate. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be, or have been mentioned as part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Mr X raised concerns with the Council about his child’s school. The Council responded explaining any complaints about the school should be raised via the school’s complaints process. Mr X says the Council failed to recognise his request was for child protection enquiries, as he considered the issue to amount to abuse of his child.
9. The matter central to Mr X’s complaint is the school’s compliance with a decision made by the child’s other parent, which Mr X does not consent to and believes will cause harm to his child. The complaint is ultimately about the parents’ disagreement about their child’s best interests.
10. The correct route to challenge a decision made under parental responsibility of another parent is via the courts. It is open to Mr X to seek legal advice with a view to pursuing proceedings against the child’s other parent, for the courts to decide whether the actions he complains about are in his child’s best interests. Arguments about any risk to Mr X’s child are matters that are reasonable to raise as part of the court process, and we will not therefore investigate the Council’s consideration of the matter.
11. We cannot investigate a complaint about the Council’s refusal to carry out an Education, Health and Care assessment. The tribunals have already been involved and provided an alternative remedy for this issue.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is ultimately about a disagreement between him and his child’s other parent, which is a matter for the courts rather than the Ombudsman.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman