Summary: We cannot investigate this complaint about information contained in the Council’s Section 7 report to court. The law prevents us from investigating what happened in court, this includes the contents of the Council’s report.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about the contents of a Section 7 report presented by the Council during childcare proceedings. Mrs X says the Council relied upon inaccurate information when compiling the report.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)

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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. Mrs X’s complaint is about the content of the Council’s section 7 report. This is a court-ordered report, to assist the judge in making decisions about what is best for the children’s welfare.
7. The law prevents us from investigating what happened in court, which includes the content of reports a council submits as part of proceedings. For this reason we cannot investigate her complaint.

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Final decision

8. We cannot investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is about matters that have been considered in court.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman