Summary: We will not investigate Ms M’s complaint about contact with her grandson because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. Ms M complains about contact with her grandson, B. She says both she and her son, B’s father, want more contact.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating,
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation,
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, and
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants,

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Ms M’s grandson, B, is in care. Ms M complained about arrangements for contact with B. The Council responded to Ms M’s complaint at all three stages of the statutory children’s complaints process. This 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).
6. When a council has investigated a complaint under this process, we would not normally re-investigate it. We check the council has properly considered the findings and recommendations of the independent investigator and review panel.
7. The Council sent me all the papers. The independent investigator carried out a thorough and fair investigation. He did not uphold Ms M’s complaints about contact. The independent panel agreed with his findings.
8. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation by us. There is nothing we could add to the independent investigation that has already taken place. Further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. We cannot achieve the outcome Ms M wants.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Ms M’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman