Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about a children services assessment’s accuracy and the Council not disclosing with whom it has been shared. These are data protection matters, and the Information Commissioner’s Office is better placed.

The complaint

1. Mrs X says the Council holds an inaccurate assessment of her family and will not tell her who it has shared it with.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We normally expect someone to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner if they have a complaint about data protection. However, we may decide to investigate if we think there are good reasons. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), 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 there is another body better placed to consider this complaint. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mrs X.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. In early 2025 the Council’s children services team says it completed an assessment on Mrs X’s family following a safeguarding referral. It closed the case within weeks. Mrs X says the assessment has factual inaccuracies which the Council will not amend. She says it has refused to tell her who it has shared the assessment with.
7. Mrs X has the right to ask records are ‘rectified’. This means any factual errors are corrected. If the Council refuses to do so, she can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). She can also complain to the ICO if she believes information has been shared with third parties without her consent.
8. Parliament set up the ICO to consider data protection disputes which includes ‘right to rectification’ disputes. The ICO are better placed than us to consider if the Council should change its records particularly because there are complex exemptions for child protection case files.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the ICO is better placed.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman