Summary: Mrs Y was unhappy with the Council’s response to her complaint. The Council agreed to respond to Mrs Y’s complaint at stage two of the statutory children’s complaints process. This is a satisfactory outcome.

The complaint

1. Mrs Y complained about the Council’s response to her concerns about Children’s Services’ engagement with her sister, Ms Z, and her nephews. She was unhappy with the Council’s response to her complaint.

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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 injustice we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. Once we are satisfied with an organisation’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)
4. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Mrs Y and the Council. I invited Mrs Y and the Council to comment on my draft decision.

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What I found

6. Mrs Y complained about a social worker who had been involved with the family since 31 May 2024. She complained to the Council on 1 July 2024 following a core group meeting earlier the same day. She complained the meeting was rushed and her sister, Ms Z, was not given an opportunity to read a statement she had prepared and translated to share her views. Mrs Y says this had been a feature of the family’s dealings with the social worker. She says Ms Z was unable to put across her views and the views of the children. She was concerned about the implications for a Child and Family assessment the Council was undertaking. She says she had asked the social worker on four occasions for a meeting but had not been offered a meeting.
7. The Council responded at the first stage of the statutory children’s complaints process on 7 August. The Council upheld complaints about ‘cultural sensitivity’ and the use of interpreters; said the translated document, while not read out in its entirety, was circulated to participants; noted the social worker came to the family’s home on 12 July for a meeting; and said that core group meetings every four weeks provided an opportunity to discuss concerns. The Council suggested a meeting with the social worker and a manager to improve relationships and move forward.
8. Mrs Y said the meeting on 12 July was a further example of the social worker preventing the family from raising their concerns and asked the Council to respond at the second stage of the statutory children’s complaints process.
9. The Council offered a meeting with two managers before responding at stage two.
10. On 8 August, Mrs Y declined the offer of a meeting and asked the Council to proceed to stage two.
11. The Council responded on 14 August to say it believed that “appropriate consideration […] has been undertaken at Stage 1 and that further reviews by independent persons at Stage 2 will not produce demonstrably different outcomes. As such, we are at an impasse and unable to progress your complaints further and suggest early escalation to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman instead.”
12. Unhappy with the Council’s response, Mrs Y complained to us.

Consideration

13. There is a formal procedure, set out in law, which councils must follow to investigate certain types of complaint. It involves:
• a written response from the Council (Stage 1);
• the appointment of an independent investigator to prepare a report (Stage 2); and, if the person making the complaint requests
• an independent panel to consider their representations (Stage 3).
14. Regulations set out which complaints are eligible and the process the Council must follow. (The Children Act 1989 Representations Procedure (England) Regulations 2006)
15. The Government has also issued guidance. (Getting the Best from Complaints. Social Care Complaints and Representations for Children, Young People and Others issued by the (then) Department for Education and Skills)
16. The guidance recognises the importance of efforts to resolve complaints at the earliest opportunity, for example by meeting with the complainant.
17. However, it also says, “once a complaint has entered Stage 1, the local authority is obliged to ensure that the complaint proceeds to Stages 2 and 3 of this procedure, if that is the complainant’s wish.”
18. Mrs Y asked the Council to respond to her complaint at Stage 2. The Council was wrong to refuse her request.
19. In response to my enquiries, the Council agreed to respond to Mrs Y’s complaint at Stage 2. I welcome the Council’s undertaking.

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Agreed action

20. The Council agreed to respond to Mrs Y’s complaint at Stage 2.

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Final decision

21. I have ended my investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman