Summary: The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint about the Council’s investigation into a school governing body. This is because the matter is out of the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction as the complainant is complaining about something that happened whilst he was a member of a public body.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, complains that the Council did not conduct a fair investigation into complaints raised against him in his role as a school governor by other members of the board.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We can only accept complaints from members of the public or their authorised representatives. This means we cannot accept complaints from councillors or school governors complaining about something relating to their position on a public body. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered Mr X’s complaint and the investigation by the Council. I considered Mr X’s comments on a draft of my decision.

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What I found

Public bodies

5. A board of school governors is a body delivering a public service.

What happened

6. Mr X was a governor on a board of governors for a school. He complains that during an independent investigation by the Council, complaints were made about him and that the Council’s investigation was not impartial as it did not speak to all members and did not involve him in the investigation.
7. Mr X complains that the investigation outcome has caused him personal humiliation and damage to his reputation. Mr X would like the recommendations from the investigation to be reconsidered.

Assessment

8. I cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about how the Council conducted its investigation. This is because Mr X is complaining about something that took place whilst he was in his role as a member of a public body. Legally, I cannot consider complaints from members of public bodies, or complaints about things that happened to people whilst in their roles in public bodies.

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Final decision

9. I will not investigate this complaint. This is because I cannot investigate a complaint from a member of a public body, and Mr X is complaining about something that happened whilst he was in his role within a public body.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman