Summary: We have upheld this complaint about the Council’s failure to complete a statutory complaints procedure investigation in time. The Council has agreed to provide a suitable remedy, and this removes the need for us to investigate.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council failed to provide financial information or payments in relation to a shared care order. Mrs X made a complaint under the statutory complaints procedure, but the Council failed to meet the relevant timescales.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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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.
5. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).

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My assessment

6. Mrs X made her initial complaint under the statutory complaints procedure in September 2025.
7. The information contained in the independent officer and independent person reports show the Council missed statutory completion dates at both stage one and two.
8. The Council did not complete its stage two response within 65 days as required by the procedure. The delay in completing this stage of the investigation amounts to service failure.
9. We are satisfied the Council has a plan in place to investigate Mrs X’s complaint. We accept the Council’s delays caused Mrs X and her family stress and financial uncertainty and that this injustice remains unremedied. We have therefore invited the Council to provide a remedy to Mrs X, and it has agreed to our proposal.

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Agreed action

10. The Council has agreed to the following actions to remedy the complaint:
• Complete its stage two adjudication within 20 working days of the date of this decision.
• Consider providing a remedy to Mrs X in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies, for the injustice caused by the delay. The Council will offer Mrs X a remedy payment of £350.
11. In the event the delay continues beyond 16 October 2026, we would expect Mrs X to make a new complaint to the Council. Once the complaint has exhausted the Council’s complaints process, and in the event Mrs X remains unhappy, she may refer the complaint to us, and we will consider whether to investigate it further.

I consider the remedy agreed by the Council is suitable and that it is taking steps to address the issue at the heart of this complaint. It is therefore unlikely investigation would achieve anything more for Mrs X.

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Final decision

12. We have upheld this complaint. The Council has agreed to resolve the complaint by providing a proportionate remedy to the injustice caused to Mrs X and the Ombudsman could not achieve more by investigating.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman