Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of his safeguarding referral about his child’s school. We cannot investigate matters about the internal organisation and management of the school. There is also not enough evidence of fault in the Council not taking the complaint further.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council did not register or assess his safeguarding referral about mixed-gender toilets at his children’s school. He says this failure has left safeguarding risks, causing him anxiety and distress. He wants the Council to review its processes, investigate the school, provide him with a full complaint response and to apologise to him.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
3. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. We cannot investigate matters relating to the internal organisation, management, or discipline of any school or educational establishment maintained by the authority, which would include internal organisation/management issues within a school. (Local Government Act 1974, sch 5(2)(b))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

8. Mr X made a safeguarding referral to the Council’s Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) about mixed-gender toilets at his children’s school. He says the school did not do a risk or equality impact assessment of the toilets. The Council decided not to intervene in the school’s affairs based on the information he provided. It also decided the school could manage its own governance in that regard.
9. The LADO oversees allegations about people who work with children, where their behaviour may have harmed a child or posed a risk of harm. Concerns about how a school manages its facilities do not usually fall within the LADO’s role. The LADO considered Mr X’s concerns and the actions being taken by the school and decided not to intervene in the circumstances. There is not enough evidence of fault in how the LADO made this decision to justify us investigating.
10. We also cannot investigate Mr X’s concerns about the school’s use of mixed-gender toilets as the law prevents us from investigating such matters.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate some of Mr X’s complaints because there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making. We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about the management and organisation of the school as we do not have the power to do so.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman