Summary: Ms M complains about kinship care. We will not investigate Ms M’s complaint now because there is not enough evidence of fault in the complaints process to justify our involvement, and it would be in Ms M’s interest to complete the statutory children’s complaints process. Ms M wants a swift resolution to her complaint. We cannot achieve the outcome she wants.

The complaint

1. Ms M complains about the Council’s fostering service (kinship care).
2. She made a formal complaint to the Council in August 2025. The Council responded at the first stage of the statutory children’s complaints process. Unhappy with the Council’s response, Ms M asked to proceed to the second stage. The Council appointed an independent investigator in September 2025.
3. Ms M complained to us in January 2026. She said she had not received the report from the independent investigator or the Council’s response. She said she was terminally ill. She asked us to investigate her complaint about the Council’s fostering service instead.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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 our involvement, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, and
• it would be reasonable for the person to complete the local complaints process.

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

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

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

Back to top

My assessment

7. The statutory complaints process 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).
8. Regulations set out the timescales for the process.
9. I asked the Council for an update. The Council explained there had been some difficulties agreeing a statement of complaint, but the investigator had completed a draft of his report and hoped to finalise the report by the end of the week. The Council told me it had been in regular contact with Ms M and understood her wish to complete the process as soon as possible.
10. By my estimation, the investigation may have taken slightly longer than the maximum time allowed by the regulations by the time it is completed. However, there is not enough evidence that any delay is the result of fault by the Council, or that it as caused sufficient injustice to justify our involvement.
11. It is in Ms M’s interests for the investigator to complete his investigation and the Council to adjudicate. The Council’s response is due imminently. It would take us much longer to reach this point. Ms M understandably wants a swift resolution to her complaint. We cannot achieve the outcome Ms M wants.
12. If Ms M is dissatisfied with the outcome at stage 2, she can ask the Council to arrange an independent review panel to consider her complaint at the third and final stage of the statutory complaint process. There are limited circumstances in which she could complain to us without completing the third and final stage. These are set out in Government guidance. We normally expect complainants to complete all three stages before we consider their complaint.

Back to top

Final decision

13. We will not investigate Ms M’s complaint now because there is not enough evidence of fault in the complaints process to justify our involvement, and it would be in Ms M’s interest to complete the local complaints process. Ms M wants a swift resolution to her complaint. We cannot achieve the outcome she wants.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman