Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s involvement with her children. Further investigation by us could not add to the Council’s responses to Miss X. Some of her complaints are late or outside our jurisdiction. The Council has not had the chance to respond to Miss X’s complaint about advocacy for her child.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains about contact she has with her children. She complains the allocated Social Worker is preventing proper contact with her children, causing significant distress. Ms X wants the Council to allocate her children to a new Social Worker and Team, who will support her children returning to her care. Ms X believes one of her children needs an advocate to express their wishes and views. She also wants increased contact with her children.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
3. 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, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint unless we are satisfied the organisation knows about the complaint and has had an opportunity to investigate and reply. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to notify the organisation of the complaint and give it an opportunity to investigate and reply. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(5), section 34(B)6)

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

8. The Council has been responding to various complaints from Ms X about its involvement with her children since at least October 2023. This has included requests for new Social Workers, increased contact with her children and for them to return to her care.
9. We usually expect people to complain to us within 12 months of the events they are complaining about. Any issues Ms X continues to have about the Council’s handling that occurred more than 12 months prior to her bringing her complaint to us are now late. I have seen no good reasons why Ms X could not have brought her concerns to us sooner, so I will not exercise discretion to investigate those issues now.
10. The Council has explained to Ms X why her children cannot return to her care at this time. It has also explained why it will not continue to respond to Ms X’s repeated requests for a new Social Worker and Team to be allocated to her children’s case. The Council has warned Ms X it will not tolerate inappropriate behaviour from her towards its employees.
11. There is nothing more we could add to the Council’s responses to Ms X by investigating her complaints. The Council continues to work with Ms X and her children. It has explained it will reassess whether Ms X’s children can return to her care when it is satisfied the actions requested of Ms X have been appropriately completed. The Council has also advised Ms X that she can return to court if she wishes to apply to change the existing arrangements for her children’s care.
12. In response to our enquiries, the Council says it has not had the opportunity to address any complaint from Ms X about advocacy for one of her children. It has confirmed it can consider and respond to this element of Ms X’s complaint to us if she still wishes to pursue it.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we could not add to the Council’s responses or achieve the outcomes the complainant wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman